Metaphysical Fourth Commandment and The Fourth Law of Prosperity

Over the last few weeks we have discussed in depth the Metaphysical meaning of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd commandments according to books by Emmet Fox and my class notes from school as well as “The 10 Laws of Prosperity” by Margaret Tree West. To refresh your memory, they are are follows:

Metaphysical Commandments

1. “God and I are One”
2. “Worship no false idols or graven images, instead put God 1st”
3. “Thou shalt not take the “I am" name of Spirit, thy God, in vain”

The First three Laws of Prosperity

1. “Thou shalt look to no other source but God for thy Supply”
2. “Thou shalt make no mental images of lack”
3. “ Thou shalt not speak the word of lack or limitation thus taking the “I am” name of God in vain.”

Before we move on to the 4th Commandment, I'd like to make a general statement that pertains to all the commandments. “There is,” according to Emmet Fox, “one great fundamental law, the Law of Being, the summing up of all laws in life, and it is this: whatever comes to you, whatever happens to you, whatever surrounds you will be in accordance with your consciousness and nothing else; whatever is in your consciousness must happen, no matter who tries to stop it; and, whatever is not in you consciousness can not happen”

That is why it is so important for us to strive to stay awake and alert, staying conscious every moment of the day that we possibly can. It is a task that is far from easy but one that will save us so very much pain and suffering, if we can follow this path of staying conscious and alert even half of the time.

Having said that, let us move on today to the 4th Commandment, which reads according to the New Oxford Annotated Bible, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shall thou labor, and do all thy work; but, on the 7th is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God; in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy wife, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in 6 days the Lord made Heaven and Earth, the seas and all that in them is, and rested on the 7th day, wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath Day and hallowed it.”

Now in this 4th Commandment Moses used the numbers 6 and 7: for, the Hebrews the #7 was a symbol for peace and rest and the #6 represented satisfaction with what had been done. When we observe nature even today, we note that it is full of activity for a time and then goes into a period of rest. Animals and plants do the same. Plants, for example, grow through the winter and spring and rest in their full beauty in summer and fall.

People do not often understand what mental rest and relaxation are. They often wake with the radio newscast and or have the radio or television on most of the day or have their head in the newspaper, a book , or a magazine whenever they sit down. The thought of meditation, prayer, and quiet time is often foreign and scary to them.

Now in the Lamsa Bible there are only two verses that are slightly different than the various other Bibles. They are the 10th verse, which adds the phrase, “But the 7th day is the Sabbath Day to your God, keep it Holy.” The added phrase is “to your God”. And also the 11th verse, which added the phrase “and sanctified it” following the statement “the Lord blessed the 7th Day”. The changes in the Lamsa Bible gives a slightly better clue to its more profound meaning but it is still the most misunderstood or least understood of all the Commandments. I am sure that some of you may be shocked by its meaning. I hope so, for if my talk does not shock you a little, it is a wasted opportunity. Unless we are shocked out of our complacency, we rarely are ready for new interpretations.

Remember now that these commandments were given to the Hebrew people at the time of their leaving Egypt, metaphysically the land of materialism and lower consciousness. They were traveling at this time slowly through the desert and on the surface this commandment, like the others, literally meant what it said for that period of time. These folks needed rules to live by. They were free for the first time and scared. “It is a wonderful thing in Moses' day,” states Emmet Fox, “to insist that everybody set aside one day a week to think about Spirit, or at least to oblige themselves to stop their secular activities. No rule can make a man Religious or Spiritual or give him Faith, but it can help.” He also states that “Like all the other commandments, this one is instruction in seeking the presence of God everywhere, particularly where trouble seems to be. Where there is fear and doubt, Spirit brings faith. Where there is lack, God brings abundance.”

Now as with all these commandments there is a deeper more profound meaning. Jesus said, “feed my lambs, feed my sheep.” Metaphysically lambs are those folks at a more materialistic view of consciousness and sheep are people at a more Spiritual level of consciousness. At the more Spiritual level of consciousness “there is a sense that the sabbath can be everyday, all day.” says Emmet Fox. “For those who understand Jesus' teachings, it is always the sabbath Day, the place where we stand is always holy ground.” We learn this more clearly from the parable of “The Pool at Bathesda”. The pool was a place of healing waters. Here Jesus tells a man to “pick up your bed and walk to the pool to be healed.” He meant get up yourself and walk into the water. Yet Jesus tells him to do this on the Sabbath Day, infuriating the Hebrews in power. He blatantly broke Jewish law by healing someone on the Sabbath.

Jesus shows us that the true Sabbath is a state of mind, not a day of the week. It is a consciousness of rest from mindless thoughts and doings and a giving of ourselves over to meditation and study of Spiritual matters for a time. It also may include a Spiritual act, such as what Jesus did. Yes the law is fulfilled in both thought and action, Yet, it is not, proves Jesus, a day of the week. Thus the 4th Metaphysical Commandment is “It is always the Sabbath Day. We honor it by consciously spending time with God in thought and deed. Think how we hold our “Reiki Healings” on a Sunday, which for us today would be considered to be the Sabbath. Those of us involved are doing a Spiritual deed on the Sabbath.

Let us go back to my reference earlier that people find it hard to try a day of rest. They may find it even a little scary. In fact, we get so wrapped up in our various wants, demands, chores, and desires that we don't know how to mentally let go. Do we fear the quiet? Many of us even have trouble letting go enough to go to sleep. If you don't believe me, just listen to all the ads on the radio and television for sleeping aides. Most likely the most written of all prescriptions are ones for anxiety and sleep. This leads us to Margaret Tree West's in her book “Prosperity's 10 Commandments”, “Thou shalt let Go and let God Do it.”

When we 1st undertake the process of bringing forth material prosperity into our lives, we approach it the same way we often live the rest of our lives, with frantic fearful doubt. My advisor, Rev. Robert Egean, says, “Have you ever watched a softball team play supposedly for fun, especially guys in their twenties and early thirties? As the game moves on they seem to lose all sense of relaxation, and combat becomes the plan for the day. For me,” he says, “it is uncomfortable to watch.” This is not something that I have personally seen but I have seen guys on the freeway, when someone passes them maybe illegally and then slows down again and they are behind this inconsiderate driver. Road rage often follows. I have seen people who seem to live life just waiting for someone to do something wrong, for a battle to begin. Just as I have seen dogs barking and barking at other dogs waiting to get into a tussle. They may not realize it, but they are far from happiness and peace. They seem to be driven by a great fear of something. In any case, they have forgotten, if they ever learned it, how to just “Let Go and Let God ” especially in times of trouble or confusion, to just breathe, sit still, relax, and be at peace. Just as an aside, those are the folks that I might suggest start with walking meditations, the Mill Creek Trail I have found is great for this. You and I can easily have a day like I'm describing. We can't seem to stay still and be at peace. We get ourselves agitated about something someone possibly may have said to us and as hard as we try, we can't seem to let go of whatever is at the center of our concern. Healing, prosperity, peace on Earth are not the result of fierce intensity. My Heaven is instead the result of putting forth loving and forgiving energy in a given direction with my conscious mind and then letting go and letting Universal Law or Spirit complete the job.

Just look at the way you decide to plant a garden in the spring. You might meditate about it first, that would help. But usually you first decide what seeds or plants to buy, you buy them and bring them home, you decide where the garden will be, you dig up the soil, pull the weeds and cultivate the ground, then you put in the seeds and plants and fertilize them. What do you do next? Well, if you ever want live vegetables or flowers, you let it be. You let the Universal laws of Nature complete the job. You have entered the Sabbath. You have completed all that you can do and are allowing Spirit to do the rest. Yes, the 4th Law of Prosperity is “Thou shalt let Go and Let God Do it.” Thus, when there is something in your life that you desire, first pray and meditate about it, then do all that comes to you to do, and finally you must let Go and let God do what needs to be done. This is why we always say in our closing circle after we have said our prayers, “We see these people and these situations as they truly are whole, healthy, and full of life, and then we give them the greatest gift of all , we let go and let God.” No amount of forcing will make things happen faster any more than forcing will make your seeds sprout and grow faster.

The hardest thing for our egos to do is to admit that we are not totally in control. That is why death often scares people so much, for they are not usually in control of that either. You see, many of our desires are artificially influenced by Madison Ave. advertising. When we feel a need or a desire in our lives, we need to check out whether it is from Spirit or from our ego. A way to tell the difference is its urgency. Spirit is never in a hurry. The ego, limited in time, wants it right now! Barbara wants it yesterday, not the soul of Barbara but the ego of Barbara. The Soul like Spirit continues on. It can neither be created nor destroyed. God knows no time.

Now for the process: First you must meditate and wait, counting your breathing (if necessary), for the quiet voice of Spirit to speak. The speaking, unless you are a mystic, is usually not audible. It may be just a feeling of knowing deep in your gut. You might refer to it as your intuition. Then you know your course of action. You do what is necessary to make whatever it is possible. When you have finished these things, it is the Sabbath. It is a time to “Let Go and Let God Do it”. That is the 4th Law of Prosperity. Thus, the 4th Metaphysical Commandment is “It is always the Sabbath Day. We honor it by consciously spending time with Spirit in thought and deed.”

Namaste,

Barbara