Iconic Actor Reveals Why He Refused a Nearly $1 Million Offer — and the 'Blessing' He Says Came After He Gave Money to His Church to Help the Poor

Actor Mr. T, born Laurence Tureaud, is a life-long Christian who is anything but shy about sharing his personal faith and values, telling HuffPo Live on Wednesday that he once stood on principle and turned down a nearly $1 million offer to appear in a beer commercial.

"They offered me almost a million dollars to do a beer commercial in Japan. I said, 'I won't do it,'" the actor explained. "First, it was $700,000 and then they moved the price up. Why? Because of what I stand on."

Mr. T, 63, said he would have been a "liar" and a "fraud" if he advertised beer when he works hard to spread positive messages to young people and professes not to be a drinker.

"I don't do that. I'm not into that," he said. "They were wanting to pay me more money, then to cut me down."

Watch his comments below:

Mr. T went on to say that he is "a sinner" who isn't perfect, but that he has been a life-long Christian who works hard to follow the Bible. Like anyone else, though, he said that he sometimes fails, admitting to, at times, harboring dislike and "un-forgiveness" in his heart.

"That's a sin right there to not forgive somebody," he said.

As for his upbringing, Mr. T said that his father was a minister and that his mother, too, was a strong Christian.

While he never had a "Damascus road moment" — a reference to the life-altering encounter that the Apostle Paul had with Jesus in the New Testament — Mr. T said that he, like his parents, has consistently and diligently sought God throughout his life.

"I would see my mother and father standing in the kitchen praying," he said. "I was baptized by my father when I was four years old."

Watch Mr. T explain his faith journey below:

The actor also shared that he believes his iconic movie role as Clubber Lang in "Rocky III" came as a blessing from God after he selflessly donated the money he won in a boxing contest decades ago to his church.

"When I won the Tough Man contest two years in a row, I gave the money to my church," Mr. T told the outlet, noting that he wanted to use his winnings to help the poor in his community. "I won because my cause — c-a-u-s-e — my cause was greater than the other guys' cause."

Mr. T said that his motivation for winning the contest had everything to do with using the prize money to help his church, and he believes that decision — which he made years ago — led to some blessings in his life.

"When I gave the money to the church, my blessing came back ... when I gave, that's when I got the call from Rocky people," he said. "The Rocky people called because my heart is right. I gave the money. I wasn't looking for anything in turn."

(H/T: Huffington Post)