Exposition:

All glory and honour be unto the highest God for ushering us into

another week. This week, we shall be looking at the topic, “Lottery – Biblical Stand”.

According to the Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, lottery is the act of drawing of lots in which prizes are distributed to the winners among persons buying a chance. It is also the act of risking something of value on an outcome that depends on chance.

Like betting, lottery is a complex and difficult subject to discuss because it has so many different levels and shades and perceptions attached to it. Nevertheless, we will attempt to find out what the Bible says about it. Lottery is a form of gambling that entails casting a lot on an outcome that depends on chance. The main purpose of lottery is to win additional money.

The desire to become rich overnight, the inclination of materialism, secularism and libertinism has led to the influx of gaming, gambling and lottery.

The issue looks more threatening to this generation because patrons of lotteries argue that there is no biblical passage that explicitly forbids the act. On the other hand, many conservative Christians frown upon gambling and lotteries of any kind. Online lottery, which is a new frontier in the spread of gambling, appears to have greatly increased the number of persons staking on a regular basis. Again, the trend has even become worse as some Christians stake lotteries for charitable purposes and some charlatans who pose as men of God also give lotto numbers to individuals.

From our main text in Proverbs 28:22, the Bible admonishes us to work hard so we will have plenty but condemns anyone who follows worthless pursuits. The writer of the book of Proverbs iterated that people who follow worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty. We are, therefore, to be content with what we have for the Lord has promised never to leave us nor forsake us.