Church Rejects Donation from Lottery Winner

[abcgrad94]

This is called business. Any time I buy something, they are gaining my money at my loss.

It's not a loss to buy something because you have the object. You have SOMETHING in return. With the lottery, there is no gain at all unless you win.

As for the lottery paying for the education of children, I have to beg to differ. We have the lottery here in WV and our school systems and teachers are constantly begging for raises, saying the lottery hasn't helped them at all. Now our county as approved table games, too. This has not attracted GOOD business, just more drugs and prostition and bars. We have people losing jobs left and right, losing their homes and going on welfare. By the time we the taxpayers pay out to fix all the social problems caused the gambling, the cost far outweighs any amout the lottery "contributes" to education or the gambling help line for addicts.

 

[Ps104_33]

Good discussion. I like to relate a story that I heard one time abouty DL Moody. Whether true or apocryphal I do not know. A local tavern owner decided to give his church a large donation. Moody was criticised for taking the money by some of his members. He said, "The devil had that money long enough. Now its God's turn."

 

[Jon-Marc]

Investments in the stock market can be "easy money," too.

I made some "easy money" by selling my home. Is that sinful money too, and God wouldn't want any part of it? The reasoning of some seems to be that if you haven't worked for and earned the money, then God wants no part of it.

I'm reading lots of "opinions" on this, but back it up with scripture. Personally, I don't believe God wants me to win the lottery, but I wouldn't say it's sinful since I have won small amounts of money in the past when I did play the lottery.

 

[pinoybaptist]

Good discussion. I like to relate a story that I heard one time abouty DL Moody. Whether true or apocryphal I do not know. A local tavern owner decided to give his church a large donation. Moody was criticised for taking the money by some of his members. He said, "The devil had that money long enough. Now its God's turn."

:laugh: Whoooeeee!! First a brother posted something about "meating" Christians, and that brightened a dismal 3 o'clock morning I had. Now you share this story which really, really, made my day a second time.
Heeeeehaaaaaawww !!! Yip ! Yip ! Yip !!:thumbs:

 

[Alcott]

Christ said that a child of Abraham will do the works of Abraham, and here you rail against him as if he were some kind of robber.

You neither know the Scriptures nor the power of God, and it's only the rules of the board that spare you from the pronouncement of another of my opinions.

As I'm not a coward to put my email here, let me see if you're a coward to say what you have in mind. And include-- in a post or in a mail-- whether you do the works of Abarahm... have you led a mass slaughter and took spoils and tithed them to a local priest? And did you marry your half-sister?


(Edited only to remove email addresses which is against BB rules.)

 

[donnA]

I made some "easy money" by selling my home. Is that sinful money too, and God wouldn't want any part of it? The reasoning of some seems to be that if you haven't worked for and earned the money, then God wants no part of it.

I'm reading lots of "opinions" on this, but back it up with scripture. Personally, I don't believe God wants me to win the lottery, but I wouldn't say it's sinful since I have won small amounts of money in the past when I did play the lottery.

I think you make a very good point, there are lots of ways to get 'easy money', condemning one means you must condemen all.

 

[SBCPreacher]

I see the lottery as a tax on people that can't do math!!

I have never bought a lottery ticket. If I ever did, I'd probably win $2 and then I'd be hooked. I'm not going to take that chance.

I have never encouraged anyone in my church to buy a lottery ticket, but I have told them that if they do, and if they win big, everyone will know about it, and I'll come to their house to pick up their tithe check! A couple of hundred grand would enable us to do a whole lot of ministry!

The God I serve saved me from my sins many years ago. He gave me new life, cleansed me, and uses me for His service to bring Him glory. I'm sure if He can do that with a singul, unholy, unworthy person like me, doing that with money isn't a problem to Him.

 

[Revmitchell]

If you support gambling so be it. I don't make a big deal out of such things. But I hold to certain biblical standards on it. It doesn't help an opposing argument to make bad comparisons. Selling a house is not easy money. We have to labor for the money that paid for that house to begin with.

 

[StefanM]

If you support gambling so be it. I don't make a big deal out of such things. But I hold to certain biblical standards on it. It doesn't help an opposing argument to make bad comparisons. Selling a house is not easy money. We have to labor for the money that paid for that house to begin with.

And you labor for the money to buy the lottery ticket.

You do not labor for the lottery winnings just like you do not labor for the appreciation in value of the house.

 

[Marcia]

Why is it the unfruitful works of darkness. A lot of good comes from the money made. Like the paid education of children.

Hardly! This is the reason states give for lotteries, but studies have shown very little goes to education, or at least not the amount that was promised.

 

[Marcia]

This is what I was talking about:

http://www.tepper.cmu.edu/index.aspx

Carnegie Mellon University researchers found that people who feel poor are more likely to play the lottery than people who feel rich. And as a result, the lottery in most states tends to be a very regressive tax that burdens poor people more than the wealthy.

[....] "Some poor people see playing the lottery as their best opportunity for improving their financial situations, albeit wrongly so,” said Haisley. “The hope of getting out of poverty encourages people to continue to buy tickets, even though their chances of stumbling upon a life-changing windfall are nearly impossibly slim and buying lottery tickets in fact exacerbates the very poverty that purchasers are hoping to escape.”

Researchers said their study suggested that lotteries spark a vicious cycle that not only exploits low-income individuals’ desires to escape poverty but also prevents them from improving upon their financial situations. They recommended that state lottery administrators explore ways to lessen their dependence on funding mechanisms that less directly exploited he poor.
Source: http://blogs.moneycentral.msn.com/t...0/study-state-lotteries-prey-on-the-poor.aspx

http://www.tepper.cmu.edu/index.aspxhttp://www.tepper.cmu.edu/index.aspxhttp://www.tepper.cmu.edu/index.aspx

 

[Marcia]

We don't need a verse that says, "You shall not gamble." We use the principles taught in scripture, some of which have been put up by other posters on this thread, and deduce from that.

The Lottery is gambling; we know it hurts poor people more than others; and it is done based on the idea of luck, a concept totally at odds with the Bible. Not only that, but the lottery encourages such thinking. How often do we hear that odius phrase, Lady Luck, in connection with lotteries? I hear it a lot.

The lottery and Jesus don't seem to go together in my mind.

 

[donnA]

people chose the lottery, no on makes them.

 

[Marcia]

people chose the lottery, no on makes them.

I know. In fact, I made this point way back on the thread. However, I can try to understand their desperation and not participate in a system that perpetuates it.

Do you think it's okay to gamble?

 

[Aaron]

Why is it the unfruitful works of darkness.

If you think that gambling is a hallowed activity, then by all means indulge and make an offering to the Lord. If you think that gambling is a sin, then your question is spurious. It would be no different than accepting donations from the price of a harlot or the ransom paid to a kidnapper.

The love of money is why people have careers too. Is working sin now?

The love of money is why a lot people do what they do. But to answer your question, if he is working because he loves money, then yes, his work is sin.

For the Christian, he should be working because that is what he is commanded to do, and he should be looking to God for the provision of his daily bread. But if you can show me a commandment to gamble or to loan one's money out at usury so that he may be increased in goods and meet meet his needs thereby, then I'll concede that an offering therefrom might be hallowed and acceptable to God.

401k's must be sin, too, since that is easy money.

Christ's commandments concerning money have very broad implications, no doubt.

 

[Aaron]

As I'm not a coward to put my email here, let me see if you're a coward to say what you have in mind.

:laugh: My email address is readily available by accessing my profile. I see I didn't receive one from you.:laugh:

And include-- in a post or in a mail-- whether you do the works of Abarahm... have you led a mass slaughter and took spoils and tithed them to a local priest?

Again, you demonstrate that you are woefully ignorant of the Scriptures.

And did you marry your half-sister?

My wife is a child of Abraham, and so am I. So I guess I did marry my sister! :thumbs: Hubba! Hubba!

 

[donnA]

I know. In fact, I made this point way back on the thread. However, I can try to understand their desperation and not participate in a system that perpetuates it.

Do you think it's okay to gamble?

I have already said I do noy play lottery.
I don't approve of gambling, but no on makes people gamble or play lottery. They chose it themselves.

 

[Alcott]

My email address is readily available by accessing my profile. I see I didn't receive one from you.

I don't see any address of yours in your profile. And I posted my address in the post from which you quoted me, but an administrator edited it out.

Again, you demonstrate that you are woefully ignorant of the Scriptures.

Yes or No... Did Abraham lead a mass slaughter of a region, take the spoils, and tithe them to a local priest?

Yes or No... Is this one work of Abraham you have yet to do? and do not plan to do?

My wife is a child of Abraham, and so am I. So I guess I did marry my sister!:thumbs: Hubba! Hubba!

Alright, Incest Aaron.

 

[Jon-Marc]

Do you think it's okay to gamble?

Only what one can afford to lose.

 

[webdog]

I know. In fact, I made this point way back on the thread. However, I can try to understand their desperation and not participate in a system that perpetuates it.

Do you think it's okay to gamble?

Since it's not forbidden in Scripture, it matters not what we think. It's true we are to be good stewards, but if gambling is considered sin, any activity for fun we spend money on must also be sin, like collecting sports memorabilia, going to sporting events, playing video games, etc. No doubt these COULD be sin, but they are not sin automatically as gambling is often stated as being.