Gambling
Gambling and Covetousness by Dave Brown
Gambling: A Safe Bet? by Bryan Gibson
Gambling -- Who Wins in Government Sponsored Lotteries? by Dave Brown
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Gambling and Covetousness
by Dave Brown
One of the most often-heard rationalizations in an attempt to justify gambling is that life is a gamble and so when you go into a casino, bet on the horses or buy a lottery ticket, this is just a normal natural thing. On this page, this does NOT fit what we are calling gambling. Of course, people can use words in any way they want, but when it is done to deceive, it is sin. This fuzzy use of words is a device of the devil.
We deny that the natural things of life listed above involve gambling; indeed, they do involve risk, but all risk is not gambling. Very few of the things that people do involve no risk at all, so what is the use of a word that covers everything. Oh – it is of great use to Satan. For use on this page, however, let us be quite precise as to what we are talking about. It is NOT risk per se; instead, here is its definition:
Gambling involves putting something at stake (money, property, etc.) and in jeopardy based on an uncertain outcome, hoping by luck to take others’ stakes who have done the same thing. In gambling, you risk what is yours to obtain what is another’s, without giving anything in exchange.
Let us define another word that is used in the Bible: covetous.
Covetous in this context is referring to those who are "(eager) to have more" i. e., to have what belongs to others; hence, "greedy of gain, ..." <1 Corinthians 5:10-11; 6:10; Ephesians 5:5> (from Vine's Expository Dictionary). This is the exact motivation for gambling, and the Bible clearly condemns it. Those who argue that “life is a gamble” make the word “gamble” meaningless in an attempt to confuse. Unlike gambling, legitimate business risks can and often do produce wealth for everyone.
Covetousness brings about its own set of consequences. One is the addictive nature of gambling. This is the big hidden downside of winning. It has been estimated that the cost of this problem alone to society (bankruptcies, additional government assistance, etc.) more than offsets any financial gains that legalized gambling could produce. Those who have faith in God’s way can see clearly that the states that are depending upon this vice to fund their programs will have to pay a dear price when these sources dry up. Any system of revenue generation based purely on greed (as opposed to the generation of real wealth) will ultimately collapse of its own weight. It is a house of cards that looks good for a while, just like many pyramid schemes. But history shows that the more effort that we put into non-productive (in this case, counterproductive) enterprises, the quicker our society will not be able to meet its basic needs.
Gambling: A Safe Bet?
by Bryan Gibson*
Editor’s note: While this article is dated, it is NOT out of date. None of the principles have changed, just as the Biblical principles it is based upon have not changed, nor will they ever. It seems like neither is the nature of man to want to obtain something for nothing.
Think gambling is gaining in popularity? Consider a few facts. In 2003, the gross revenues from gambling were $72.9 billion—more money than Americans spend on movie tickets, theme parks, spectator sports, and video games combined. More money is spent on gambling in the state of Mississippi than all retail sales combined. As hard as it may be to believe, Americans gamble more money each year than they spend on groceries. As recently as 1990, only two states had casinos—Nevada and New Jersey, but today, 48 states have legalized some form of gambling. The only exceptions are Utah and Hawaii. The long lines coming out of convenience stores—why that’s people lining up to buy state sponsored lottery tickets—throwing their money away for what is on average a 1 in 12 million chance of hitting the jackpot. Nowadays, people don’t even have to leave home to gamble—they can do it online. The gambling industry has even changed the name to make it more attractive—the popular name is now “gaming.”
Readers, what is your reaction? How do you feel about gambling? If you are spiritually minded—if you have a desire to please God—the key question on your mind is, does God approve? The only way we can answer that is by looking at this practice in light of God’s word.
Gambling Defined
The word “gamble” can be used to mean a variety of things. Any venture involving risk is sometimes referred to as a “gamble” (e.g. farming, stock purchases, buying life insurance, taking a trip, etc.). There are some risks involved in these ventures, but this is not what we mean by gambling. This is the definition that is being applied on this page:
Gambling involves putting something at stake (money, property, etc.) and in jeopardy based on an uncertain outcome, hoping by luck to take others’ stakes who have done the same thing. In gambling, you risk what is yours to obtain what is another’s, without giving anything in exchange.
This helps us see the difference between gambling and some other types of risks. When someone purchases life insurance, both he and the insurance company should benefit. With good management, the company will make a profit, while the purchaser obtains security for his family. If one buys stock in a company, he is providing the company with capital, and if the company does well, he will share in its profits. But, if one buys a lottery ticket, the only way he can gain is to have a few million losers. Similarly, if one enters an office pool, he hopes to win at the expense of his co-workers. Here’s the bottom line. Gambling is not simply taking a risk, but risking mine so that I might take yours.
We are opposed to gambling, as just defined, and our opposition is based on what God says in His word. Consider the following points, and as you do, keep this in mind. Some of the individual points might not apply to every form of gambling, but when you consider all the points together, a case can be made against every form of gambling, at least as it was defined above.
Scriptural Objections to Gambling
1. Gambling violates principles relating to how we should treat others (see Matthew 7:12;
Matthew 22:39; Romans 13:10).
“Love does no harm to a neighbor” (Romans 13:10). If I really love my neighbor, I don’t want to harm him in any way—spiritually, physically, or financially. If I take his money, I have done him harm. “Not if he’s a willing party,” someone might counter. Do you remember Dr. Jack Kevorkian, who performed over 100 “assisted suicides” during the 1990’s? These people were willing, but what he did was still wrong. He did “harm” to those people, even though they gave their consent. People may willingly risk their money, but if I take it from them, I’m still doing them harm. They are clearly worse off than they were before.
Consider the gambling industry in general for just a minute. It exploits the most vulnerable people in our society—the young, the elderly, and those susceptible to addictive behaviors. These people are my neighbors, so how can I support an industry that has done them such great harm?
2. The things that make gambling so appealing are clearly opposed to Biblical principles.
“Something for nothing”—that’s what attracts so many to the world of gambling. That’s not exactly what God had in mind for our motivations. From the very beginning, God expected man to work (Genesis 2:15). Following the sin of Adam and Even in the garden, this work became even harder (Genesis 3:17-19). The command to work for one’s own bread is also found in the New Testament (Ephesians 4:28; 2 Thessalonians 3:10). Gambling undermines this work ethic; it promotes idleness rather than industriousness. The gambling interests would have us believe that gambling is a better solution to financial problems than work and sacrifice.
Gambling is driven and sustained by greed. If greed did not exist, neither would the gambling industry. Jesus said, “One’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things which he possesses” (Luke 12:15). The gambling industry would have us believe just the opposite. God tells us what to with covetousness or greed: put it to death (Colossians 3:5), and replace it with contentment (Hebrews 13:5). The gambling industry is hoping we won’t.
3. Gambling can also become very addictive.
Gamblers get an adrenaline rush, even when they’re losing. One can easily be persuaded that the next hand, the next roll of the dice, the next lottery ticket, will be the big winner. The thought of “beating the house” is just too good to pass up. Throw in a little gain here and there and the enticement only increases. The worst thing that can happen to many people is to win. That is why the “house” loves to see people win. They know that they are reinforcing the addiction, that the winner will never be satisfied, and that it will all come back before long (something that is guaranteed by their setting the odds).
Did you know that in Georgia a certain percentage of the lottery receipts go to a hot line for compulsive gamblers? Does that not say something about how addictive gambling can be? Why do you think organizations like Gamblers Anonymous exist? “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon” (Matthew 6:24). If you love gambling, you know who you are serving.
4. Gambling is a “gateway” to other sins.
“But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (1 Timothy 6:9-10).
Think of the many people who failed to provide for their families (1 Timothy 5:8), because they squandered their money on gambling. Think of those who committed suicide, when their mounting debts became more than they could handle. Think of the many other sins for which gambling can become a breeding ground: lying, stealing, envy, hatred, violence, and even in some cases, murder. Admittedly, some control their gambling better than others, but should we pray, “Lead us not into temptation” (Matthew 6:13), and then place ourselves squarely in the path of temptation? Does gambling help us avoid temptation, or make us more vulnerable?
5. Gambling hurts one’s influence for good.
Jesus commands, “let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). Do you suppose anyone has ever glorified God for what they observed at the black jack table? The state lottery in Georgia passed by the slimmest of margins, and most of the objections were on moral grounds. So if gambling is still viewed by many as immoral (the correct view), how can we participate and still be lights in the world? Clearly, the conduct of a Christian should be above reproach. Not only should his conduct be honorable, it should also appear that way to others (2 Corinthians 8:20-23). When is the last time you heard someone describe gambling as an “honorable activity”?
When our mission is to save others (1 Corinthians 9:19-23), the last thing we want to do is put a stumbling block in their path (1 Corinthians 8:9-11). There may be those who look up to us, who appreciate our convictions on morality. Will they still do so if they see us buy a lottery ticket? (And what if we should win?) We may even convince some who previously had a problem with gambling to go ahead and buy one themselves. Is that the kind of example we want to set? What do you think? If we participated in gambling, would our influence be stronger or weaker?
6. Gambling puts us in some undesirable company.
“He was doing fine until he got with the wrong crowd”—how many times have we heard it? That’s exactly what happens with many who get caught up in gambling. The Scriptures warn, “Evil company corrupts good habits” (1 Corinthians 15:33); and, “The righteous should choose his friends carefully, for the way of the wicked leads them astray” (Proverbs 12:26).
7. Gambling is poor stewardship.
“Every good and perfect gift” (James 1:17) comes from God, including our material possessions. We are admonished to be “good stewards of the manifold grace of God” (1 Peter 4:10). If you entrusted some money to a stock broker and he took the same risks that are found in many forms of gambling, you would soon get rid of him. Let’s take what God has given us and use it wisely—to His glory and the betterment of those around us.
People sometimes ask, “Where does the Bible condemn gambling?” Our answer would be each time it speaks of love and concern for others; each time it warns against the love of money; each time it extols the value of hard work and sacrifice; each time it speaks of fleeing temptation; each time it speaks of self-control; each time it admonishes us to let our lights shine before men; each time it warns against influencing others to sin. Is gambling acceptable in the eyes of God? Don’t bet on it!
* The above article was written by Bryan Gibson, but he would like to acknowledge several others, from whom material was obtained: John Gibson, Brian Sullivan, Dave Brown, and Steve Klein. Statistics were obtained from www.family.org (check out this website for documentation).
Gambling – Who Wins in Government Sponsored Lotteries?
by Dave Brown
The following article appeared in July, 1999 in Think On These Things. However, since gambling is hardly a dead issue in Alabama or anywhere else, the facts presented are still quite relevant.
Who Really Wins?
In the light of a recent federal government study that urges a moratorium on legalized gambling, and the fact that citizens of Alabama will soon be voting on this issue, we decided to devote this entire issue to the subject of gambling. Fact: the Southern Baptist denomination is the largest in Alabama and it is highly reflective of southern religious culture. Fact: the Southern Baptist and most other denominational leaderships have clearly opposed all forms of legalized gambling. Nevertheless, Alabama citizens recently elected a governor almost entirely on the basis of a single issue that he called: the education lottery (i.e., a lottery to generate funds dedicated solely to education). Clearly, many religious people are very confused on this issue. This is not what you would expect from the “Bible Belt.”
This confusion results from arguments presented by gambling interests. Some people will get very rich if further gambling is legalized in the state. (THEY are not gambling!) If you have any doubt about this, go into a large casino the next time you have a chance. Look at all of the expensive high-tech machines, the luxurious settings, and all of the facilities and employees. Ask yourself: who owns all of this? Then ask yourself: who paid for all of this? You know the answers: LOSERS. The losers who paid for it obviously do not own it. Neither do the people of the state. But someone does.
Gambling interests confuse the public with many arguments. For example, they say: “Life is a gamble; legalized gambling will generate money for much needed programs; it will put people to work; and, if we don’t allow it here in Alabama, then all this money will go out of state.” We will systematically refute these arguments in this issue, and thereby hopefully provide you with the information that you need to help defeat this plague to our society.
What about the stock market?
One of the things that lottery proponents want us to believe is that we are all gamblers anyway. Most citizens have their retirements invested in the stock market. Isn’t that gambling? NO!!! There are many differences between purchasing stock and purchasing a lottery ticket: (1) When you purchase shares of stock, you own a part of a company. If this company prospers, you prosper. It is not evil, per se, to take risks; but it is always evil to benefit at the expense and the weakness of others. (2) If the company that you purchase makes money, no one else has to lose. In lottery gambling, if you win, you know that thousands and thousands of poor people are out their grocery money in order to make you rich. This is absolutely NOT the case with investing — when you invest you put people to work. The money that you make comes from goods and services that people buy and enjoy, not because they were duped into buying lottery tickets. (3) Investing, even in a risky venture, starts some company or enables that company to expand its operations, thus putting people to work and expanding our economy by producing benefits to society, which is generally good (Titus 3:14). Of course, investing in any company that does not produce good products, such as gaming or liquor, is the exception.
Gambling reduces the money for such investments by channeling enormous losses to politicians, who only spend what is left over after the “overhead” and gambling interests get their shares. If jobs are created, they will not produce any benefits to society. This lost productivity could be satisfying real needs if the labor and other capital resources were allocated to useful goods and services. Since no real wealth is created, the lottery is just a hidden method to transfer wealth from those who are least able to afford it to politicians and gambling interests. Most voters who are duped into supporting it are the very ones who will pay most in their vain quest for wealth. To levy a fair tax would be honest, moral, and much less costly. But that would not be politically marketable. It is much more effective to promise people something for nothing. This promise is a lie and those who live by it will spend eternity if the lake of fire (Rev. 22:15).
All Cost, No Benefit
If the lottery is passed your tax money will be used to convince your children that gambling is an activity that is good and beneficial to education. Lotteries have to advertise it in order to generate sufficient revenue to survive. So your tax money will promote this addictive vice. This promotion has already begun: "Siegelman says a lottery would raise $150 million a year for education." (© 1999 The Birmingham News).
Money does not justify sin. But is this something for nothing? Lottery money in California was divided in this way: for every $1.00 taken in by the lottery 10 cents went to the store that sold the ticket; 30 cents went to the overhead machinery of the lottery; 30 cents went to schools; 30 cents went to patrons as winnings. Thus, for every dollar taken out of the productive sector of the economy, society gets 30 cents in return. This means it would take $500 million a year out of our economy to raise $150 million for the school system. To keep things simple, let's just say it would take about $400 million. Assuming there are a little over 4 million people in Alabama (or about 1 million families). So the cost is about $400 per family per year. Just plain simple fourth grade arithmetic shows the fallacy of the argument; but people will believe what they want to believe.
Given that many of us are not going to participate, either for religious or common sense reasons, those households who do participate will have to contribute well over the $400/year to get the promised $150 million. How much of this will come straight out of welfare and unemployment checks? Who is really paying this bill? When children do not get fed and there is not enough money at the end of the month to pay the electrical and heating bills, who will be called upon to foot the bills? So even if we elect not to play in this crazy game, honest taxpayers will still have to pay up. In addition, the costs of gambling addiction will easily run into the tens of millions when we measure it in terms of lost productivity and ruined lives.
This $400 million is totally lost to society since it produces nothing. A tax of just $200 per family would produce over twice the revenue at half the cost. The savings would put more people to work building real wealth, thus generating even a greater tax base for the state. While surrounding states are emphasizing their re-allocations to education, they are not honestly showing the true sources and costs to society.
What are the conditions of salvation given by Jesus?
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