Gambling (in all its forms) is not a sin as it is never
expressly approved or condemned in the Scriptures but it is a terrible and
foolish path to choose, benefiting a few and destroying everyone else in its
wake.
Because the Bible doesn't directly address gambling and its
silence provides fertile ground for discussion and disagreement, opinions
vary.
As
such we must be careful in deciding what to do with issues that aren’t
expressly forbidden or approved in the Bible. Considering the issue
of gambling, we must not turn our personal convictions into what we consider to
be Biblical truths for ourselves and for everyone else (Romans 14; 1 Corinthians 8:1-12; 1 Corinthians 10:13-33; Romans 11:1).
Whether or not gambling is a sin depends on our
personal convictions which are an expression of our inner conscience. If we
think it’s a sin to gamble but do so, then we’ve committed a sin because we’ve
violated our conscience which expressly forbidden in the Bible because a
violated conscience impairs our ability to hear God speak. (Romans 14:23).
You can gamble if
you want to. After all, Paul wrote: "Everything is permissible—but not
everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible—but not everything is
constructive” (1 Corinthians 10:23). It all boils down actually to
two qualifiers:
1. Is it beneficial?
2. Is it constructive?
To
answer this (and in so doing determine where you stand), you will need to discern
guidance by contrasting key principles of Scripture with those associated with
gambling. Here are a collection of Bible principles that speak toward the heart
and attitude behind gambling:
1. The Bible admonishes us to work creatively and for the benefit of others (Eph 4:28), while
gambling fosters a "something for nothing" attitude.
a.
A
Christian is expected to eat the bread of his own labour (2 Thessalonians 3:7, 10, 12). Gambling doesn’t enable you to fulfill this requirement.
b.
There are three acceptable ways to obtain goods or
money.
i.
working to earn money (Ephesians 4:28 and 1 Thessalonians
4:11-12)
ii.
obtaining goods through exchange or barter ( Genesis 47:17 and 1 Kings 5:10-11)
iii.
receiving lifetime gifts or an inheritance at death (Matthew 7:11 and Ephesians 4:28)
c. Disciplined work habits, thrift,
prudence, adherence to routine, and the relationship between effort and reward
are core values of the Christian work ethic and are part of the Christian life.
Gambling corrupts these values. Rather than depending upon hard work, gamblers
depend instead upon luck and chance.
2. The Bible condemns materialism
(Matt. 6:24 25; Hebrews 13:5), while gambling promotes it. Get rich schemes often tempt us away from
trusting God as the real source of our financial security. They can lead us to
trust more in our money than in our God. Paul gave an intriguing picture of
what happens when the line is crossed and we trust more in our money than in
the God we worship (1
Timothy 6:6-10).
3. Gambling creates and encourages vices such as greed and covetousness. The Tenth
Commandment admonishes us not to covet. Coveting, greed, and selfishness are the
base emotions that entice us to gamble and these sins grow stronger the longer
you are actively gambling.
4. Gambling
negates the biblical teachings about stewardship
and management (1 Corinthians 6:19). Not a single dollar that comes into our
hands is ours. It all belongs to God. We are to manage it well. We have such
slim odds of winning that we might as well drive by the “7-11” and throw money
out the car window with the hope a RM5 bill will reach the cashier in return for
a can of Coke!
5. The Bible
clearly states that the lottery is a “get rich” scheme and “get rich” schemes
are to be avoided at all costs. Solomon wrote from experience: “A faithful man
will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished” (Proverbs 28:20: Proverbs 13:11; Proverbs 23:5; Ecclesiastes 5:10.) The
principle (stated in Proverbs) is that if we spend the same amount of time planning and investing as we do trying to get rich quick we will come out way
ahead in the future.
6. When we
buy a ticket we become participants in the wicked and immoral ways that our
governmental leaders use a lottery to steal
from the poor people. He who oppresses the poor to increase his wealth and
he who gives gifts to the rich—both come to poverty (Proverbs 22:16). Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do
not crush the needy in court, for the LORD will take up their case and will
plunder those who plunder them (Proverbs 22:22-23).
7. Gambling destroys
families. Gambling is a major cause of family neglect. As people get caught
up in a gambling frenzy, they begin to neglect their families where
they
or their families can’t afford food, bills can’t be paid, and children can’t be
clothed. Money spent on gambling is frequently not risk capital but is income
that should be spent on family needs. In 1 Timothy 5:8,
Paul says that a person who refuses to care for his family is worse than an
infidel. Parents must provide for their children (2 Corinthians 12:14).
8. Gambling is a steep slippery road towards
destructive addiction that breeds other
evils. The danger here—no matter what form
gambling takes - is when someone gambles to the extent that addictions begin
his life is no longer his own or the Lord’s but one that is in terrible
submission to an addiction leads to a squandering of time and money which
then becomes "a source of sin and ruin to others." Like other
addictions, gambling can arouse excitement in the participant and may lead into
conduct which is difficult to control. Addiction is clearly prohibited in
Scripture as a Christian is only a slave to one Master, his Lord.
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