Christian Liberty and the Lottery: Should You Play?

by Eric Walters

March 5-11 is National Problem Gambling Awareness Week, and by coincidence (or divine intervention?) individuals in multiple States are hurriedly competing for the grand prize Mega Millions lotto drawing, worth a record $370 million.

Last night I stopped by my local Seven-Eleven store to pick up a few items. At the checkout, while talking to my friend James on my mobile phone, I remarked about the large number of people waiting to purchase lottery tickets for the $370 million prize. At the time it was estimated that New Yorkers were buying more than 1 million tickets an hour, and Virginia retailers were selling about 8,550 tickets per minute as Tuesday night’s drawing approached. James asked me to buy a ticket, offering to split the cost, and the prize if we won. I didn’t think it was such a great idea, so I declined.


I’ve never played the lottery before, never been seriously “tempted” to go for all those millions. Admittedly, this is probably related to some rudimentary teaching I learned when I first became a Christian: gambling was wrong and sinful, like throwing money away. That was the black and white about gambling, but over the years, I’ve become more aware of the responsibility of my freedom to choose. To be sure, today the reasons for choices are not always so black and white, and more often than not, at best they are shades of gray. I’ll stop here.

I realize that there are many Christian people who don’t think twice about playing the lottery, and many of my friends and colleagues consistently play Lotto. I even know some who quietly pray that God will help them win (To be honest, I think that’s a bit crazy—but I digress.). I’m reminded about the story of a minister who preached regularly from his pulpit against gambling, only to be surprised one day when his wife held the lucky number. Suddenly the skeptic preacher was converted by the gospel of Lotto because he believed God had blessed his family!

I’m interested in your thoughts about Christians and gambling behavior, but before we are tempted to rehash old points and become “preachy”, let’s consider the following:

· State lotteries provide significant funding for public schools and other essential services for many citizens and local communities.

· Some share the opinion that playing the Lotto is very similar to investing in the stock market. Is this merely a case in semantics?

· What practices, other than playing the Lotto, constitute behavior that can be considered as gambling?

· Do spiritual communities or churches rely upon traditions and protocols that a) resemble gambling, or b) are promote addictive behavior?

My point is not to demonize or condemn those individuals who play the lottery, but instead to challenge us to think critically about choices we make in many areas of our lives. As Christians, what central (biblical and extra-biblical) factors inform the rationale for our choices, and do they account for a sense of individual, spiritual, and communal responsibility?

In this vein, National Problem Gambling Awareness Week can help believers understand that gambling isn’t fundamentally about money. Instead, this week can focus us toward greater resourcefulness, responsibility, and stewardship.

I welcome your thoughts.

Eric Walters is Co-Founder of TheoSyst Group.