By now most people have heard that three winning tickets were sold for the recent Powerball lottery jackpot of around $1.6 billion. Whenever the jackpot reaches a large amount, it seems to be a national pastime to spend a lot of time imagining and sharing what you would do if you won. Houses, cars, travels…the possibilities are endless. However, these daydreams often fuel the temptation to acquire this kind of wealth without the requisite work required to earn it (cf. Prov. 1:19; Prov. 15:27). This temptation can grow to be so strong it leads people to make entirely irrational choices, such as the group of people in Florida who spent $143,000 on tickets for this jackpot (cf. 1 Tim. 6:9-10).
Sadly, many Christians today view state-run lotteries as harmless dalliances people can indulge in from time to time, particularly when the winnings are notably large. Yet as Paul wrote to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:9, “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.” The number of ways in which purchasing lottery tickets is a bad idea are far too numerous for the space I have here, but I do want to point out a few that we, as Christians, should bear in mind when the temptation to participate in the lottery arises in us. First, there is the significant moral and ethical question of the state not only endorsing gambling, but operating the mechanism itself. Paul describes the role of government in Romans 13:1-7 (and Peter in 1 Peter 2:13-15), where taking money from the citizens by promising them untold riches in a game of chance doesn’t seem to be implied. This presents us with a second consideration: who the disproportionate losers are in lotteries. The poor are systematically targeted by and the victims of lotteries, expending resources they do not have. Preying on their desire to be delivered from poverty, the state advertises the lottery in such ways that encourage people who cannot afford it to overspend, despite odds that make it clear one’s chances of winning are smaller than being struck by lightning…three times in the same place. Finally, by our participation in the lottery by purchasing tickets (even if it is only sporadically), we are not only giving our endorsement through our actions, but we are also giving our support for the system through our finances. If it is true that all of our financial resources have been given to us by God and should be used for the purposes He ordains (in line with Luke 16:1-13), it is hard to justify our participation in any fashion in such a system. Rather than misusing the resources God has entrusted to us, let us endeavor to employ them for the advancement of His Kingdom. When you next encounter the temptation to buy a batch of Powerball tickets, take that money and do something good for someone less fortunate than yourself, something that will bring glory to God. Just something to think about…
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