Powerball Winner??

[whatsitmean]

Hi Carl, from what I have read on the subject it is pure conjecture what the Urim and the Thummim were but it is known they were a means of inquiring of the Lord and pronouncing judgments or decisions concerning His will.

[Dad Ernie]

Greetings All,

First:

Eccl 11:1-10 Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it after many days. 2 Give a portion to seven, and also to eight; for thou knowest not what evil shall be upon the earth. 3 If the clouds be full of rain, they empty themselves upon the earth: and if the tree fall toward the south, or toward the north, in the place where the tree falleth, there it shall be. 4 He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap. 5 As thou knowest not what is the way of the spirit, nor how the bones do grow in the womb of her that is with child: even so thou knowest not the works of God who maketh all. 6 In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thine hand: for thou knowest not whether shall prosper, either this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good. 7 Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold the sun: 8 But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all; yet let him remember the days of darkness; for they shall be many. All that cometh is vanity. 9 Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment. 10 Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.

John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Do you see the connection between the two? I believe that all we DO on this earth is VANITY, that is, to satisfy only ourselves. I must agree with the author of this:

Eccl 12:13-14 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.

I do not believe we have the authority to "judge", as in to penalize or degrade the stature of another, when it comes to things like gambling, or what they eat or drink, or what they wear unless it imposes some sort of duress upon another. We do not know the intent of God in so blessing this millionaire. All we can do is see what "fruit" is produced by it, whether it be for good or evil, for it shall ALL be judged by the one who searches our hearts and our mind and judges rightly.

Blessings,

Dad Ernie

[CWJ]

whatsitmean. you definitely gave me something to study on.

I'm wondering in the cases of "casting lots", if this is like our gambling with the results we want from it?  It seems not.

Dad Ernie, I'm not looking at this from a "judgemental" angle, so to speak.

What I'm trying to determine is if gambling, or a lottery is something we should be doing as children of God?

We know we aren't to covet, but do you ever slip?  I know I do.(so does all this fall into coveting?)

So I'm not coming from the judgemental angle, but trying to determine the Lord's instructions or non-instructions on this matter.

I'm trying to purely put a category of sinful or not sinful on the action of lotteries, and I suppose gambling also.

[Dad Ernie]

Greetings CWJ,

What I'm trying to determine is if gambling, or a lottery is something we should be doing as children of God?

I'm sorry I implied anyone here is doing any unrighteous "judging". We must judge all things, seeking out the good and holding on to that.

I believe that "What is not of faith is sin". But more to the point, I think we must ask ourselves if any particular activity produces "fruit" in the Kingdom of God. Certainly we do things every day that does not produce righteous fruit. I do not see God begrudging us our humanity in this regards. However, if we look at what gambling has done to the majority of people in this world, I would say that it is mostly very bad. It has caused breakups of marriage and relationships, stealing, lying, even murder. The love of money is the root of all evil. So would I recommend someone get involved in ANY sort of gambling? Absolutely NOT! Could I condemn another for their "indiscretion" or "entertainment"? No, it is between God and themselves. The Lord does say that he who has, more shall be given, which looks like the situation in this case.

I pray I did not ruffle any feathers when I mentioned judging.

God bless,

Dad Ernie

[CWJ]

Dad Ernie, on one hand you seem to say "gambling is bad".  But are you saying then it is an outright sin?  Then you follow with ,essentially, through "gambling" God has rewarded a christian with more.

Very confusing to me.

AGAIN, this is not about comdemning anyone at all!

I believe God has a standard on this issue with no gray areas.

Would God use that which is evil to obtain good?

Does He "need" this $ in the churches so bad that He would allow a christian to win at "gambling", just so this man can "tithe"?

And with all the publicity on national TV, is this bringing glory to the Lord, or, is this showing people that christianity puts no limitations on the behaviour of christians?  They can do as the world does?

How does the unsaved AND the newly re-born see this?

Is this in the will of the Lord?

I am not talking legalism, but obedience. Not for the purpose of judging another, but to define the straight and narrow way.

After all, the scriptures are full of definement, aren't they?

Blessings, Carl

[Dad Ernie]

Greetings CWJ,

What is not of faith is sin. According to your faith, be it unto you. Without faith it is impossible to please God, but he who comes to Him must believe that He exists and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. If you have faith of a grain of mustard seed, you can say to yonder mountain be ye removed and be cast into the ocean and it shall be so. The Lord says: When I return will I find faith?

Each instance above is "faith in God", that you are either in His perfect will or at least His permissive will for you. How can I judge another that buys a lottery ticket? Would I suggest to someone to do so? No. Would I buy one, I have, but I do not make it a habit, I have better places to put my money. Have you ever walked by a booth and signed up for getting a new stereo system or a new car? Do you invest in the stock market? Do you put your money in the hands of banks or savings and loan companies? Don't you know you are taking a chance with your money? Why don't you put it to better use by paying for a lunch for a street person. Are you storing up for yourself things on this earth where rust and moth destroy?

Please ask God what you should do. He may very well tell you to go buy a lottery ticket. On the other hand, He may not.

Blessings,

Dad Ernie

[CWJ]

Dad Ernie....still this is NOT about judging another person for doing the lottery.

It IS about defining what is gambling or the lottery in the eyes of the Lord.

I do not believe that God defines it as sin for one person and not for another.

It is or it isn't. (a sin)

You seem to want to leave it up in the air....maybe up to the individual....that is certainly NOT how we define God's Word.

I think I will present this from the following scriptural perspectives:

1.  Coveting

2.  Mis-placed faith

3.  Biblical morality (what to do with your $)

4.  Love of money

5.  Does God use evil to obtain good?

I will study from these angles and present some scriptures later.

Blessings, Carl

[nevaehinvesting]

Carl

If God convicts your spirit when you buy a ticket then don't buy them.

[George]

Hello all,

This is what I did as far as these "lottery tickets" given to me roughly 5 years ago as part of my "Christmas" present.  I merely told my mom that I would appreciate it if she didn't buy me lottery tickets but rather cash or a gift certificate.  That's basically how I left it.  I didn't tell my mom -- it's wrong to give me lottery tickets -- I didn't judge my mom but I believe my mom believes that I believe it's wrong and so this situation has never happened again.

Take care and God bless,

Your brother in Christ with much agape love,

George

[Dad Ernie]

Good response George,

However, I never look a gift horse in the mouth. That's just me. Had I received those tickets and won BIG, I would declare it a "gift of God", even for a small gift, I would have had to give God the praise. You know giving lottery tickets or scratch offs to someone is a CHEAP way of buying someone a present. If you "play the odds", they will come to nought. The recipient believes it is just "his/her bad luck", but warmly accepts the "wonderful gift" from the giver. Now what would happen if the recipient were to REALLY WIN BIG? I would bet a dollar to a doughnut that the giver would want a "piece of the action". So the "giver" can feel justified in buying a "ticket", because it is just for a gift, not for some selfish pursuit, HA, HA, that is until someone hits the BIG ONE.

Just rambling....

Blessings,

Dad Ernie