what luck is, where it came from, and its true meaning, are going to become fully evident as we move through the pages of this book. Luck is a much-used word in our modern-day vocabulary. We hear this word over and over again. Good luck and bad luck are concepts we have known about from our youth. References to luck, being the direct cause behind this-and-that event, are as commonplace to us as the daily rising of the sun.

We have grown fully accustomed to hearing luck used by people in every segment of our society. We have heard it spoken by well-meaning friends and acquaintances. We have heard it spoken regularly by the average person on the street, but its use is certainly not limited to the "average person."

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No Such Thing As Luck

The word luck is also commonly used among teachers and professors, doctors and lawyers, authors and intellectuals, media commentators and journalists.

The use of the word luck has become so common place and acceptable that people rarely think seriously about its real meaning. The public's ear has become conditioned by having heard it used so often. They have been "lulled to sleep" by its repeated use. Hardly anyone challenges the use of this word; nor is there any sense of embarrassment for having used it. Start to train your ear and you will hear its insatiable use!

Actually, the credibility of luck is just assumed by a large segment of our population. They are not bothered or irritated by its having been used in their presence or in a conversation with them. As a matter-of-fact, the public at large has bought heavily into this word; they have fully accepted its concept. They have breathed it in, so to speak, and made it an acceptable part of their logic, but by speaking it casually, they validate its preposterous meaning. Occasionally, people appear to be clowning around, in lighthearted jest, with their use of this word; but more often than not, they seriously believe in luck with a truthful conviction. They are convinced that luck is real.

Sadly, the luck terminology we hear in our everyday lives is more than just idle talk. The concept of luck is embraced as truth by countless millions. They use it as if it were a truthful explanation for both catastrophic and favorable happenings. If their house burns down, without any hesitation, they explain that it was bad luck. If they win the lottery, they attribute good luck as the cause. For some, it is an acceptable explanation of why bad things happen to good

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Luck's Controversy

people, and of course, why good things happen to those who do not deserve it.

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The varying context in which luck is used is almost unbelievable. Its use is extensive and far-reaching. It is used in figures of speech, expressions of belief, common sayings, and as we will see, in many other ways. In the next few pages we are going to highlight some of the popular ways in which luck is used. We are already familiar with many of these expressions and beliefs about luck. My guess is, you are accustomed to hearing most of them regularly. How often do you hear these common phrases and sayings?

Tough Luck Good Luck Blind Luck Beginner's Luck Lucky Bad Luck

Best of Luck Out of Luck Plain Luck Lady Luck Worse Luck Luck Into It

Hard Luck Pure Luck Push One's Luck Wish Me Luck Luck Upon Lucky Dog

Notice how many different descriptive kinds of luck are listed above. You may know of others. I guess "rotten~~ luck is supposed to fit in at the bottom of the barrel, and with "pot" luck, you might get anything.

Here are a few examples of how luck is regularly used as a figure of speech, metaphorically. The vast majority of us will be familiar with these sayings and what they mean.

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Before we begin to trace the origin for the concept of luck, we need to understand how the concepts of fate, lot, fortune, and chance fit into our study. Our dictionaries generally use all of these companion terms in defining luck.Webster's New World Dictionary gives the following definition:

Luck: The seemingly chance happening of events which affect one; fortune; lot; fate.'

The word destiny is going to be added to our study because it is an "offspring" to the concept of fate. Additionally, the concept of destiny is currently so "alive" that it needs to be handled as a pertinent aspect of this study. There are still other words that we will consider later, but for now, we are going to look briefly at the relationship between luck and these companion terms.

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No Such Thing As Luck

As we will see, all these words are used interchangeably. Luck means chance; chance means luck; luck means fortune; fortune means luck. And although destiny does not appear in the above definition, it is often used to define fate. Fate is always nearby in any definition of luck. Lot appears occasionally in defining luck. These terms are generally lumped together in luck's definition. They are actually used so interchangeably that it will be necessary to sort out their individual meanings. (In later chapters, we will examine them, one-by-one, with enough depth to establish their real essence.)

The basic concept of luck is ancient, but the word itself is relatively modern. It dates back to only about 1300 AD in its English form. (We will deal with its etymology at a later time.) Our contemporary use of luck simply conveys the older, established concepts of fate, destiny, lot, fortune, and chance. Because of this, we must begin to deal with these earlier words before we tackle luck.

All five of these terms refer to spiritual powers and attributes. They seek to define and describe metaphysical forces. Generally speaking, those who utilize these words are seeking to describe what they believe to be a spiritual force acting upon human life (usually upon their lives personally). All of these terms refer to the supposed reality and action of a god. Since every one of these five words is a theological concept they will be addressed as such throughout the pages of this book, and rightfully so.

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The fundamental arguments for the idea of luck are not new, nor have these arguments changed through the ages. Throughout the pages of this book, we have confronted these long-standing, controversial arguments head-on. Now that the deceptive mask projected by the concept of luck has been removed, we can see its alarming identity. Its uncanny weirdness is outrageous. In the last pages of this work, we need to “snuff out” any life remaining in the worthless meaning of this word. We also need to bury, and put to rest,

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all of the far-fetched, ridiculous claims of “luck theology.” We cannot allow the image of luck’s meaning to linger in our thinking and “fog up” the clarity of our reasoning. What we need is a firm, straightforward, accurate understanding of both what luck is and what it is not. The following condensed presentation of luck’s true meaning should be helpful. First, we are going to see what luck is not

Luck is not fate, fortune, lot, destiny, or chance.

It is none of these things. All of these concepts are outgrowths of pagan idolatry. They describe the meaningless qualities and attributes of false pagan gods. All these fictitious concepts were conceived by idolatrous minds and have been nurtured and personified by the fictional literature of mythical authors. Though these deviant terms are used extensively today, they represent bogus concepts that describe nothing existing in reality. These words cannot rightfully define luck.

Luck is not a natural impulse, nor does it operate through personal instinct.

There are some that make the claim that luck leads them by impulse or instinct. This cannot be true! Animals are guided by what we call instinct. Humans are basically guided by understanding and discernment. Our state of consciousness emanates from habit patterns and learned responses. It is also true that we have survival instincts and emotional instincts. People do have natural inclinations and abilities — all of this is true. However, luck cannot operate through a gifted instinct because it cannot operate period! It cannot

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guide men to success. Those who lay a claim to gifted sensory perception and magical insight are duplicating the claim of the “false priests” we studied in Chapter Seven. Spiritual abilities come with our new birth; they are God-given. Devil spirits guide people by possession. They can control a human mind by manipulation.

Luck is not an inexplicable force that cannot be understood, explained, or accounted for.

It is certainly true that there are many things that are not understood in life, but luck is not one of them. The superstitious beliefs that are taught about a “luck-force” existing beyond human knowledge and comprehension add up to nothing more than groundless, off-beat speculation. The natural-minded, irrational man has imagined the existence of a force called luck, and then says, “It can’t be explained.” So the non-existent, but popular imagined force of luck has developed into a catchall explanation for good and evil. But, the only forthright and truthful explanation for the forces of good and evil are clearly spelled out in God’s Word. There are no other spiritual forces affecting our lives, beyond those that are thoroughly explained by God’s Word.

Luck is not an innocent, harmless, crutch-word that can be used without any real impact or consequences.

It is not a harmless activity to contradict God and the truth of His Word. God promises in His Word that He is the legitimate and genuine bestower of blessings and benefits, and that true prosperity comes by Him alone. To rob God of ...

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