Neville Goddard on Galatians 5:13-18 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Galatians 5 in context

Scripture Focus

13For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

14For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

15But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

16This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

17For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

18But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

Galatians 5:13-18

Biblical Context

Paul says you have been called to liberty; do not use liberty for the flesh, but serve one another in love. All the law is fulfilled in loving your neighbor as yourself; walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

Neville's Inner Vision

Within the Galatian message lie two inner forces, the Flesh and the Spirit, contending for your attention. Liberty is not a license to indulge the ego, but a state of awareness in which I claim I AM here and now, guided by love. When I imagine myself serving my neighbor, I fulfill the one law: I love as I am loved, because I am one with all. To walk in the Spirit is to align my inner state with that divine current, to refuse the pull of selfish desire, and to let Spirit pull me toward actions of peace. The Flesh and Spirit contend within, yet I do not fear their contest; I simply revise my inner assumption until the Spirit leads. If I am led by the Spirit, I am no longer under a punitive code; I live from a higher harmony, and my outward world reflects that harmony—less biting and devouring, more unity. The key practice is imagination: I picture myself as a conduit of love, feel the reality of being led, and watch circumstances respond to that inner alignment.

Practice This Now

Imaginative act: Assume you are led by the Spirit; feel it real for a moment. Then revise any competing urge with 'I choose to love and serve,' and act from that inner posture.