Does the Bible teach us NOT to play a lottery?
From a book I just finished writing…….
“Some will say that lottery money is gambling, and they will equate gambling to a story about how Roman soldiers “cast lots” to obtain the robe that Jesus wore to His crucifixion.
Therefore, in their minds, “casting lots” is gambling, and gambling is illicit. This is because they were taught that from some fundamentalist pastor – or, they are ignorant of what God’s Word – the Bible – really says about “lots”.
Israel “cast lots” all the time. When it came time to divvy up the Promised Land, Joshua had his tribal leaders “cast lots”.
The “lucky winners” would get the best land….until the last of the land was “won” in the “lot”….The “lot” is the short version of the word – lottery.
I attempted to see if gambling…meaning paying a $1.00 for a “lot” ticket was illicit – from the Bible. I could not find anything that persuaded me that buying a “lot” was illicit. The opposite was true….”lot” tickets – pieces of paper (or, in the days of old – smooth stones) designed to allow people to “win” the luck of the draw was commonplace, in fact. So, I have no problem, personally, with buying a lottery ticket.
Perhaps if you are a pastor, you might like to contact me (with Bible verses in hand that are specific to “gambling”, and not ones that you can manipulate toward your theory), and I will be only too happy to correct it in my online e-book version of this book. I’m not too optimistic that I’ll be changing anything too soon! I made the same offer in all of my online articles on this subject. No takers.
However, “do everything in moderation” is a Biblical PRINCIPLE. You will not find that exact phrase in the Bible, but you will discover, in Titus 1:7-8 that we are to be TEMPERATE. Paul, the apostle of Jesus, was telling us what the requirements for becoming a pastor is: “For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not self-willed, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy lucre; But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober, just, holy, temperate…”
Those character traits of a pastor should also be found in any disciple – or follower of God’s teachings. The word TEMPERATE in the Greek is “Egkrates”., and it means
1. having power over, possessed of (a thing)
2. mastering, controlling, curbing, restraining or controlling one’s self, temperate.
We must always maintain control over all things, including buying a lottery ticket. Further, why do you want a lottery win? Is it for YOUR desires? If so, what are those desires?”
Any money I win from a lottery would go 90% to my charity and 10% to me. Working on it!
John Tyler, Author