Neville Goddard on Matthew 16:21-28 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read Matthew 16 in context

Scripture Focus

21From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.

22Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.

23But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

24Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

25For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

26For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

27For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

28Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his kingdom.

Matthew 16:21-28

Biblical Context

Jesus explains his path to Jerusalem, foretelling suffering, death, and resurrection. Peter rebukes him, and Jesus teaches that true life comes by denying the self, taking up the cross, and following.

Neville's Inner Vision

From Neville's lens, this passage is a map of inner turning. Jesus announces the Jerusalem journey and the required inner death of the old self before the new life can appear. The rebuke by Peter is the voice of ego clinging to familiar outcomes; Jesus replies by naming the ego as Satan when it seeks to savor only outward things. The cross then becomes an inner instrument: not a physical pain, but a deliberate release of attachment, a decision to consent to a higher order of awareness. To follow Jesus is to align with the I AM within, to let the old life die so that the life of God can live through you. The promise that the Son of Man will come in the Father’s glory points to the moment your inner perception shifts—from chasing the world to recognizing your true state as the kingdom now unfolding in consciousness. When you relinquish the old self in imagination, you do not lose life; you discover life that is truly yours, here and now.

Practice This Now

Close your eyes and assume the I AM as your only reality; revise any fear of loss by declaring I lose the old self and find life in God, then feel the kingdom arriving as your present consciousness.