Unity Church of Castro Valley
Sunday Message for June 10, 2007
Adam, the 1st Millionaire
Someone recently asked me to do a class on the millionaires in the Bible. But, I think I'd rather do Sunday talks on them so that everyone can benefit from the information. One of the misconceptions that religious people hold is that holy people have to be poor. But if you really look at the well known mystics in the Bible, you will find that they prospered. Through faith in God and in themselves, abundance was attracted to them through Universal Law.
I have seen a lot of scams on the internet. Too many people think they have to trick someone to give them money. This is nothing new; there have been shysters throughout history. But this kind of trickery will not make you rich because it is from a consciousness of lack.
Someone once said, "I could pray that a million people each send me one dollar." This is a common error in thinking. Wealth doesn't come from other people or conditions. The secret of wealth is that it begins within your own thoughts and feelings. Catherine Ponder in her book The Millionaires of Genesis, writes, "Through the deliberate action of your mind, you can develop a millionaire consciousness that will lead you to literal wealth as well as to increased abundance in all phases of your life."
We are going to look at the millionaires of Genesis to show you how this can be done. It's appropriate that this information comes from the book of Genesis because Genesis means "to begin," "to initiate action."
Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph became literal millionaires through the power of prosperous thinking. Their success philosophy was not new. It was taught secretly in ancient times. Abraham learned it from the affluent Babylonians and passed it on to his descendants. At a later time this success philosophy was taught in the famous School of Philosophy in Alexandria.
So we are going to talk about this ancient philosophy that is referred to in the metaphysics of the Bible. In fact, this is the same ‘secret' that is taught in the movie The Secret.
And why should you be interested in it? Because it is a God-given desire to seek abundance. In fact, the work ‘desire' means ‘of the Father.' So if God wants us to expand our thinking and expand our world - who are we to refuse to accept it?
ADAM, THE FIRST MILLIONAIRE
So, I'll start today by talking about the first millionaire, Adam. His prosperity story is found in the early chapters of Genesis. Since the first 11 chapters of Genesis are considered legends, Adam might be considered "the allegorical millionaire." The symbolic allegories in Genesis were universally known to the ancient people long before the time of the Hebrews.
These stories contained some of the greatest success symbology known to man. This is why it was included in the Book of Genesis. They are also found in the sacred writings of Egypt, Chaldea, and other nations which flourished thousands of years before the time of the Hebrews.
EVERY PERSON IS A MILLIONAIRE!
We think of a millionaire as a very wealthy person. But economists explain that there are "rich millionaires" and "poor millionaires." A "poor millionaire" is a person who has only a million dollars or more. A "rich millionaire" is one with at least a hundred million or more.
In the creation story in Genesis, Adam symbolizes all people. Adam is the generic man. Every person has that same millionaire heritage which God gave Adam.
You will find the formula for becoming a millionaire in the early chapters of Genesis. The Creation Story is a story of prosperity and lavish abundance. Then after the world was created God created man in His own image as a spiritual being.
(Genesis 1:26-28) Then God said, "Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth." So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth." At this point Adam and Eve would have been considered "rich millionaires."
There have been those who have said that Adam was a "miserable sinner" because (Genesis 2:7) "God formed man from the dust of the earth." But don't you believe it!
The "dust of the earth" from which Adam was formed symbolizes the rich, radiant, unlimited substance out of which the whole universe was formed. And since Adam symbolizes every person, this means that you are radiant substance and so am I! We have a millionaire-heritage as did Adam - that of becoming "rich millionaires"!
PROSPERITY LESSON FROM ADAM
The prosperity lesson we learn from that first millionaire, the allegorical Adam, is that he misused his mind powers and fell from his heritage of vast abundance. When he dwelled on a belief in lack and limitation - even though he was surrounded by lavish abundance, (Genesis 3:23) "God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he was taken." At that point Adam developed a "hard-work consciousness."
Most of us can identify with Adam. Sometimes we err in the same way he did. We are tempted to dwell on a belief in lack and limitation, even though we obviously live in a world of abundance. If so, you may have found yourself tilling the ground.
However, it's not as bad as it sounds. That "ground" from which Adam was taken symbolizes the substance of the universe. To "till it" means to begin using the inner laws of prosperity to bring abundant supply into your life again.
The good news is that you don't have to remain in the "hard-work consciousness".
HOW TO EMERGE FROM A HARD-WORK CONSCIOUSNESS
When you begin to use your mind to think and act prosperously again, you evolve out of a hard-work consciousness into a world of increasing abundance. In its oldest form the word "man" means "mind." Man is mind. Man is mind power.
It is through your mind power that you can generate the radiant, luminous substance which is the basis of your world. It is through the mind that you can claim your millionaire heritage of lavish abundance.
All great philosophers and metaphysicians have known this. In ancient legends, Adam was described as a "luminous being," his body composed of a "kind of radiance." Plato talked about man being "luminous substance."
The description of man's creation is found in the Book of Genesis. Genesis means becoming or emerging. This means that you and I are in a constant process of becoming or emerging as radiant substance when we recognize it with our minds.
WHY ARE WE MILLIONAIRES?
So why do we want to seek a millionaire consciousness and not just a potentially prosperous consciousness? Well, to look at it honestly, it is an innate desire within us that seeks unlimited bounty. Nothing can satisfy us short of unlimited supply. Why should it? There is no limit to divine substance and through the action of our minds we can form it in unlimited amounts out of the ethers of this rich universe.
God, our loving Father, thought of it first and provided a lavish universe of unlimited substance. He gave you a mind with which to claim it. That the Lord can provide for you is just as much a Biblical promise as that the Lord can heal you. We don't need to get mixed up with the idea of lack any more than we need to get mixed up with the thought of sickness. Substance owns all things.
THE MAGIC WORD FOR WEALTH
So declare yourself a millionaire. Unleash the abundance that is yours by divine right. Yes, you are a spiritual millionaire - but you can also become a financial millionaire.
One of the prosperity secrets we learn from early millionaires comes from the Bible. It describes man's wealth often in terms of "substance." The word "substance" was a magic word for wealth in Bible times.
The wealth of Abraham and Lot was described as, (Genesis 13:6) "their substance was great." Joseph's wealth was described as (Psalms 105:21) "King Pharaoh made Joseph lord of his house, And ruler of all his substance." King David appointed stewards to take care of (1 Chronicles 28:1) "all the substance." Solomon advised his followers (Proverbs 3:9-10) "Honor Jehovah with your substance, And with the first-fruits of all your increase: So shall your barns be filled with plenty, And your vats shall overflow with new wine." The Bible speaks of God giving King Hezkiah (2 Chronicles 32:29) "very much substance," and the prophet made a great prosperity statement when he said even in jest, (Hosea 12:8) "I am become rich, I have found me out substance."
However, the prospering power of the word "substance" dates back much earlier than Biblical times. The cultural classes among the ancient Egyptians knew that there was only one substance underlying everything, but the Egyptians carefully guarded this secret. They felt it would be unwise for the common laborers to learn that the substance which was used to build the fabled Pyramids was the same substance which the priests used to perform their feats of magic.
In studying the Bible, you quickly discover that the Bible is a study in substance and how to mold it into tangible abundance. The millionaires of Bible times knew that substance was the basis of all wealth. They knew how to mold it into prosperous results through their thoughts, words, and actions.
The Hebrews worked long and hard to get into the Promised Land of Canaan. Metaphysically, the word "Canaan" means "realm of substance." They were trying to get into their Promised Land of substance. They were trying to gain an understanding of substance and how to manifest it as visible results. They did learn it, and became one of the wealthiest groups of people the world has known. As you use their success secrets, which are both literal and symbolic, you can move forward toward your Promised Land of rich, unlimited substance, too!
HOW TO CLAIM YOUR MILLIONAIRE HERITAGE
Substance owns all things. Therefore, the better you understand the nature of substance out of which all wealth comes, the better you will be able to bring forth whatever you desire, and the better every phase of your life will be! All of the substance out of which your home, friends, health, and wealth are made is within you and all around you. It begins to manifest for you when you recognize it and call on it for help.
The word "substance" means "that which stands under" all visible forms of life. Metaphysicians have described it as "the body of God" out of which all things are formed through the action of the mind.
So why haven't more people become wealthy if they are surrounded and filled with this rich substance of the universe? Because substance is passive. It waits for you to deliberately mold it and shape it through your prosperous thoughts, words, and acts. In the very beginning man was given dominion over this visible world of lavish abundance, as well as over the invisible world of unlimited substance. It is up to you to definitely claim it.
You do this through your words. You can begin to claim your millionaire heritage by declaring that you are substance, that the universe is substance, that by your spoken words you are forming that substance into tangible results. You can begin now by declaring daily, "DIVINE SUBSTANCE IS THE ONE AND ONLY REALITY IN MY FINANCIAL AFFAIRS NOW. DIVINE SUBSTANCE HEALS ME. DIVINE SUBSTANCE PROSPERS ME. DIVINE SUBSTANCE ESTABLISHES ORDER IN MY LIFE AND FINANCIAL AFFAIRS NOW"
RICH IDEAS, NOT HARD WORK
If you have been one of those well-meaning people who have gotten into the old Adam consciousness of hard work, thinking that to be your salvation from lack - or if you have believed that hard work alone would bring you riches - you are in for a pleasant surprise. Wealth - especially vast wealth - rarely comes as a result of back-breaking work. Fortunes are the result of rich ideas. The idea that can help you experience increased wealth is the idea of "substance."
The thought of "divine substance" brings increased good in all phases of life. Divine substance has a universal power and a universal appeal for good in your life when you recognize it and call on it for help. The ancient people knew the power of thinking about substance and affirming it, thereby manifesting health, wealth, and happiness. You can, too!
THE ALLEGORICAL MILLIONAIRESS
Eve, "the allegorical millionairess," started out rich but ended up poor. She misused her feelings when she, too, dwelled on a belief in lack while still in the midst of abundance. Most of us can identify with both Adam and Eve since we tend to make that same mistake. Adam is symbolic of our thoughts while Eve is our feelings.
Eve, like Adam, was surrounded by the rich substance of the universe, out of which all wealth is formed. But Eve seemed unaware that she was in the midst of so much abundance, and lamented the feeling of lack. The result was that she was cast out of Eden. We must gain an inner feeling of abundance before we can experience outer wealth permanently.
Like Adam and Eve, we are all "allegorical millionaires." We start out rich, but we don't have to end up poor. The secret is to recognize and call forth divine substance as the root of all wealth. So refuse to dwell on a belief of lack while in the midst of abundance.
HOW TO DO IT
You can increase your financial income in unlimited ways as you begin daily to call on the lavish substance of the universe to provide for you. As you praise Divine Substance it will respond with increased abundance.
Like Isaac, one of the millionaires of Genesis, you may even increase your income a hundredfold. The millionaire secret of the ages is that everything has its root in divine substance.
God is a Provider for His children. He is unlimited supply and Spirit owns all things. The Creation Story is a prosperity story and is the description of lavish abundance.
After the world was created in abundance, then man was formed from the "dust of the earth" which was radiant substance. We, as luminous substance, were given dominion over the universe through the action of our mind.
We can regain this heritage by recognizing Divine Substance as the one and only reality and by affirming Divine Substance as the Source of our wealth. By affirming substance, we release it to work for us, and we regain our millionaire heritage. Substance loves to be recognized and loves to work for us.
You can increase your income in unlimited amounts as you begin daily to declare that Divine Substance is the one and only reality in your financial affairs now. Persist in recognizing Divine Substance as the foundation of your wealth, and see it manifest in your world.
SCRIPTURE: Genesis 1:26-28; Genesis 2:7; Genesis 3:23; Genesis 13:6; Psalms 105:21; 1 Chronicles 28:1; Proverbs 3:9-10; 2 Chronicles 32:29; Hosea 12:8
REFERENCE: The Millionaires of Genesis by Catherine Ponder
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Last updated
June 11, 2007
