Neville Goddard Lectures: “Faith”

03 Mar Neville Goddard Lectures: “Faith”

5/20/68

Tonight, I think you should find this ___(??), for it’s on creation. The mystery of creation is to be understood in terms of faith, so what is faith as scripture defines it? We are told that “Now faith is the assurance of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). Here is faith…I am called upon to be assured of the things that I do not see with my mortal eye. We’re told that true faith is understanding that the world was created by the Word of God, so what is seen was made out of things which do not appear (verse 3. Everything seen was made out of things—not out of nothing—but out of things which do not appear. For Blake said, “Many suppose that before creation all was solitude and chaos. This is the most pernicious idea that could enter the mind of man, for it robs the Bible of all that is sublime” and it makes the one that entertains that idea a little groveling worm outside of himself (Vis. of Last Judg., pp.91-92). He said, “Eternity exists and all things in eternity independent of Creation, which was an act of mercy.” So all things exist and the mystery of creation might be understood in terms of faith. Now faith does not give reality to the unseen; faith is loyalty to unseen reality. In this sense, and only this sense, do we really understand the meaning of the word faith.

Now on this level, if I were desirous of a certain goal in this life, because all things exist, I am called upon to take what exists though unseen and so arrange it in my mind’s eye that it implies the fulfillment of my desire. My normal mortal eye cannot see it, but in my mind’s eye, in my Imagination, I see it. I see it clearly. Now if it were true it would imply something. What?—that what I desire I have realized. Now can I remain loyal to this unseen reality? That is the mystery of creation. So I take what is—for all things exist, eternity exists, and all things in eternity, independent of creation (my creative act)—so there it is. But if I am going to build only from what my mortal eye, my vegetable eye sees, I perpetuate over and over, and remain forever where I am. But if I know that all things exist though unseen by me, and I have access to them through Imagination—for we need Imagination to make these things come alive—so in my Imagination I will see what I would like to see. Now, can I remain loyal to this unseen construction? For I have simply rearranged in my mind’s eye the pattern that I see. And if I have done it, now can I remain loyal to unseen reality? If I do and it externalizes itself into my world and becomes fact that I may share with others, then I have found the secret of creating. So the mystery of creation is to be understood in terms of faith. That is faith.

Now we are told in the 11th chapter of Hebrews of these enormously fantastic stories that all the ancients performed. They did everything. They started off with Enoch, all of the characters, Abraham, Moses, they mention them all, and they achieved fantastic goals on the earth plane. But you’re told in that same 11th chapter, they received the promises, but not the promise. They had no pattern…it took Paul to bring into being the promise…but the promises yes. They conquered and conquered and conquered, and built enormous fortunes, and did everything on all these promises. For we are told, if you can believe it, it will come to pass. Well, they were tested in faith and they could believe. But the promise…they knew nothing about the pattern. What is the pattern? No one knew what that pattern was until the fullness of time when it broke through. And when it broke through in one, he recorded the pattern. For then I know I can leave this sphere by the same use of faith and enter the heavenly sphere, so I have a pattern. I tell you, I have recorded it vividly—as vividly and as accurately as I am capable at this moment of recording—for posterity. For it’s already in print. And they can read it; they either believe it or do not believe it. Maybe they don’t want to leave this sphere and enter that sphere.