Gambling - The Odds Are Against You

Gambling-The Odds Are Against You This is an article that I wrote on the Biblical position regarding gambling. Although some of the statistics are old (most of the article was written in 1996), I believe the issues it raises are still very relevant. Like the humorous picture above, sometimes people choose to look the other way, when they know they are involved in risky behavior. We have seen, in the past 40 years, a dramatic increase in the availability of gambling. Gambling can be found in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, of course, but it can also be found in small towns such as Cripple Creek, Colorado -- rapidly changing from a mining town to a gambling spa or in your neighborhood convenience store or on the Internet.

What is gambling? Gamblers Anonymous defines gambling as: "Any betting or wagering, for self or others, whether for money or not, no matter how slight or insignificant, where the outcome is uncertain or depends upon chance or 'skill'." Reasoning from Biblical Principles The Scriptures give us principles for living correctly. They don't always specifically mention a particular sin, because Satan and us have created so very many ways to sin. Reasoning from Biblical principles doesn't make us a cult or involve Scripture twisting. It's simply using the commands and principles that God does give us and correctly thinking from those so we know how to live out life for Christ.

If you give it a little thought, I believe that you will find many sins (such as running a red light or watering your lawn during a drought) have to be reasoned from Biblical principles. In fact, there are many examples of this process in the Bible itself. Examples: Jesus and the practice of Corban (Mark 7:9-13) or Paul and meat sacrificed to idols (1 Corinthians 8). The Biblical principles that apply to the subject of gambling are: Love for neighbor (there are many verses on this). Gambling particularly exploits the poor and the weak of our society, which are especially under God's watchful eye (many Scriptures about helping rather than hurting the poor).

Gambling is an attempt to "get around" God's providence and God's prescribed methods for creating wealth. (Many, many Scriptures about God's control over all things and many verses on how we are to get wealth.) The Bible tells us to avoiding get-rich-quick schemes (there are Scriptures about this in Proverbs). Gambling feeds a love for money and causes our mind to dwell upon riches, wealth, leisure, rather than the reality of living the life God has given us (there are many Scriptures about the dangers of a love of money, not occupying our mind with fantasies, and seeking God's kingdom first). Gambling creates discontent, covetousness, and greed in our hearts (there are many Scriptures on these subjects).

Many Christians contend that the Bible does not explicitly address the issue of gambling. This is a true statement. I entirely agree that there is nothing in the Bible that specifically uses the word "gambling." But isn't this true of many sins? The words "abortion" or "marijuana" are also not found in the Bible, but we argue from principles such as child sacrifice for abortion. Or in the case of marijuana we reason from Scriptural verses about addiction and having a clear, alert mind.

There are many principles found in the Word of God that show that if you enter into the activity of gambling "the odds are against you." In fact, gambling affects our view of others, our view of God, and our view of ourselves. I.  Gambling Affects Our View of Others A.  Gambling negatively affects other people and, hence, by gambling we are not looking out for others or loving our neighbor: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.

Each of you should look out not only to your own interests, but also to the interest of others." (Philippians 2:3-4). We should consider this Scripture when our lotteries, casinos, and the Internet have created 2 million compulsive gamblers. This from the National Council on Problem Gamblers (2008 statistics): "How widespread is problem gambling in the U.S.

? 2 million (1%) of U.S. adults are estimated to meet criteria for pathological gambling in a given year. Another 4-6 million (2-3%) would be considered problem gamblers; that is, they do not meet the full diagnostic criteria for pathological gambling, but meet one of more of the criteria and are experiencing problems due to their gambling behavior. Research also indicates that most adults who choose to gamble are able to do responsibly.

" "25% of people have a weekly lottery habit" (Christian Science Monitor, 1995). Scripture commands us to be concerned about the welfare of others. Gambling, on the other hand, leaves a trail of human misery in its wake. Is it right for us to support or participate in it?   The number of compulsive gamblers will increase between 100 and 550 percent when gambling is brought into an area, according to University of Illinois Professor John Kindt ("The Economic Aspects of Legalized Gambling Activities," Drake Law Review, vol. 43, 1994, p.

59).   From the Gamblers Anonymous website: "A person in the grip of this illness creates mountains of apparently insolvable problems. Of course, financial problems are created, but they also find themselves facing marital, employment, or legal problems. Compulsive gamblers find friends have been lost and relatives have rejected them. Of the many serious difficulties created, the financial problems seem the easiest to solve.

"   At least two-thirds of compulsive gamblers turn to crime to finance their addiction, according to Valerie Lorenz, director of the Compulsive Gambling Center in Baltimore (Christian Social Action, July/August 1994, p. 26).   The crime rate in gambling communities is nearly double the national average, according to a 1996 U.S. News & World Report analysis (Jan.

15, 1996, p.58).   Three years after casinos arrived, Atlantic City went from 50th in the nation in per-capita crime to first. B.  Gambling exploits the most vulnerable members of society, the poor: "He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth.

.. comes to poverty.'" (Proverbs 22:16). In many places in the Bible we are instructed to look out for the needs of the poor.

Gambling preys mercilessly on the poor. The poor participate at greater rates and lose the greatest share of their income to gambling (Abbott, Douglas A. and Sheran L. Cramer, "Gambling Attitudes and Participation: A Midwestern Survey," Journal of Gambling Studies, vol. 9, no.

3, 1993, p. 259; Borg, Mary O., Paul M. Mason and Stephen L. Shapiro, "The Incidence of Texas on Casino Gambling; Exploiting the Tired and Poor," American Journal of Economics and Sociology, July 1991, pp.

323-332; Commission on the Review of the National Policy Toward Gambling, "Gambling in America", 1976, p. 65.)   Teens are also a vulnerable group to gambling. They are three times as likely as adults to become addicted to gambling once exposed, according to Loma Linda University Medical School Professor Durand Jacobs. C.

Participating in gambling presents a poor witness to others: "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God. Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks, or the church of God -- even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my own good but the good of the many, so that they may be saved. Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." (1 Corinthians 10:31-33).

Scripture commands us to conduct ourselves in such a manner so that our actions direct nonbelievers to the Lord rather than causing them to stumble.   God calls all of His children to a life that is above reproach in both our personal and public life: "But among you there must not be even a hint of... greed, because this is improper for God's holy people.

" Ephesians 5:3. A. Gambling indicates a discontent and a lack of trust in God's ability to provide: See Jesus' words in Matthew 6:25-34 about God's provision for His children and trusting Him to provide. This is a rather common situation, but I remember participating in the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes. They would send you an envelope packed with opportunities for magazine subscriptions.

You could sign up for the magazines or just send your Sweepstakes' stamps in to win big prizes. The stamps were located through the literature they sent you, so it was a clever way of making you read everything. I participated in this for about 6 months and then realized that I was discontent with what I had. I was always looking to hear that I had won or waiting for the next opportunity to enter. The bottom-line is: I was dissatisfied, unhappy, restless, and lacked God's contentment.

Even this small bit of "gambling" to win a Sweepstakes drew my heart away from my Father. I've never even looked at a Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes envelope again.   In counseling with gamblers, I am often struck by their preoccupation with things and their discontent about their present situation. The "next big win" will put them on easy street or when they win the lottery then they can give their children the education they want to provide for them. They are discontent about so many things.

Rather than take the Biblical road of hard work, saving, and trusting God, they want the easy road of a quick win.   God who clothed the lilies of the field and who feeds the birds will provide for our physical needs (cf. Luke 12:15; 1 Timothy 6:6-9).   "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God said, 'Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.'" (Hebrews 13:5).

B. Gambling denies God's providence, that is, God's absolute control over everything that happens in the world and His care for our lives: "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord" (Proverbs 16:33). There is no place for the concept of luck in a Christian's life, because God is so intimately involved in everything that even every decision of the casting of a lot (dice) is "from the Lord." God cares about you and will provide for you, but He has ordained ways to do that other than gambling (cf. Proverbs 3:5-6).

C. Gambling violates the 10th Commandment: "You shall not covet your neighbors house. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor" (Exodus 20:17). If you win at gambling, where did the money come from? Other people's money that they gave trying to win. You didn't create anything to earn the money.

You didn't contribute a service or goods to the community. You wanted money that was not really yours and you wanted to do nothing to earn it. The activity of gambling isn't an act of stealing, but it is an act of coveting -- an attempt to gain the resources of others without providing anything in return. III. Gambling Affects Our View of Ourselves A.

Gambling distorts our view of stewardship: See Matthew 25:14-30 which is a parable about God giving us money and our stewardship of that money. Each of us is a steward of what God has given to us. We do not "own" anything (Leviticus 25:23; Deuteronomy 10:14; Haggai 2:8; 1 Timothy 6:7). It doesn't just come from the Lord. It is the Lord's.

Money and possessions are only entrusted to us. We are stewards.   Jesus tells us that we are going to be called to give an account for how we invest what is entrusted to us. Gambling is not a good investment. Gambling is poor stewardship.

  Tyler Jarvis, math professor at BYU wrote: "The main thing to understand is that the odds always favor the house. For example, the house's take on a slot machine can be as high as 35%. This means that if you bet ten dollars, you can expect to walk away with only $6.50; if you bet $100, you can expect to keep only $65, and so forth. The more you play, the more you lose.

Although some gamblers are ahead temporarily, in the long run the odds will prevail, and the gambler will lose. This simple principle explains why the casinos take in so much money. The Foxwoods casino in Connecticut, for example, netted--and gamblers there lost--about $500 million in 1994" (from Gambling: What are the Odds?).   Most state lotteries give back only 65% of what they take in lottery sales. "These odds become clearer when we think of a simpler example, like an unfair coin.

If a coin were weighted to come up heads sixty-five percent of the time, no one would be willing to play a game where they were forced to bet on tails. In fact, the person who designed the game would be considered a cheat and a fraud. But this is essentially what happens in the casino and the lottery. Somehow, when the rare win is called a "jackpot" and is accompanied by bells and lights, the odds become obscured in our minds, and we suddenly think that this is a legitimate game we can win after all" (from Gambling: What are the Odds?). B.

Gambling undermines our work ethic (Genesis 2:15; Exodus 20:9). From the Gamblers Anonymous website: "What are some characteristics of a person who is a compulsive gambler? INABILITY AND UNWILLINGNESS TO ACCEPT REALITY. Hence the escape into the dream world of gambling. EMOTIONAL INSECURITY. A compulsive gambler finds he or she is emotionally comfortable only when "in action".

It is not uncommon to hear a Gamblers Anonymous member say: "The only place I really felt like I belonged was sitting at the poker table. There I felt secure and comfortable. No great demands were made upon me. I knew I was destroying myself, yet at the same time, I had a certain sense of security." IMMATURITY.

A desire to have all the good things in life without any great effort on their part seems to be the common character pattern of problem gamblers. Many Gamblers Anonymous members accept the fact that they were unwilling to grow up. Subconsciously they felt they could avoid mature responsibility by wagering on the spin of a wheel or the turn of a card, and so the struggle to escape responsibility finally became a subconscious obsession." Work is an essential ingredient of the divinely created order. Gambling mocks the need for work by selling the illusion of gaining something for nothing.

"The one who chases fantasies will have his fill of poverty" (Proverbs 28:19).   How are Christians to get money, goods, and resources? The Scriptures are very clear on this: work hard, save, give to the Lord's work, be generous to others, and trust God who is the giver of all wealth. For example read Deut 8:17-18; 2 Thessalonians 3:10; Proverbs 31; Ephesians 4:28.   The Bible warns against "get-rich-quick" schemes: "A faithful man will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished" (Proverbs 28:20). C.

Gambling centers around greed: "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs" (1 Timothy 6:10). The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil (1 Timothy 6:10) and the love of money is at the very heart of gambling.   Gambling proponents often claim that gambling is simply another form of entertainment, but there is more than entertainment. There is the desire for quick and easy riches.

  1 Timothy 6:9 says, "People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction." Gambling is to be avoided at all costs at all times for all people. For help see Arizona Council on Compulsive Gambling.