Neville Goddard on 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read 1 Thessalonians 1 in context

Scripture Focus

1Paul, and Silvanus, and Timotheus, unto the church of the Thessalonians which is in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ.

2We give thanks to God always for you all, making mention of you in our prayers;

3Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;

4Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God.

5For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake.

1 Thessalonians 1:1-5

Biblical Context

Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy greet the Thessalonians in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ, thanking God for them and recalling their faith, love, and hope. They affirm their election by God and witness the gospel's power at work in their lives.

Neville's Inner Vision

Within this greeting, Paul locates the Thessalonians inside the womb of God, a state of consciousness in which grace and peace are already present. The outward church is only the reflection of an inward alignment: faith that acts, love that labors, and hope that endures are not external achievements but inner movements of consciousness under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. When Paul says the gospel came not in word only but in power and in the Holy Ghost with much assurance, he is testifying to the fact that a convinced state can be observed in the effect it produces: lives that show confidence, resilience, and a calm certainty of being known by God. Your election of God is not a distant destiny; it is the present recognition by your own I AM that you are loved and chosen. In this light, the church exists wherever awareness rests in a state of grace, and the ordinary events of life become signs of the gospel’s power. To practice, feel yourself already equipped with faith, love, and hope, and let the inner state radiate into your world.

Practice This Now

Imaginative act: Sit in quiet and assume the state of grace as your own. Revise the morning with the line I am the I AM, elect of God, and the gospel is power now in my life.