Intro Surprisingly, the Bible contains no specific command to avoid gambling, betting, or the lottery.

However, the Bible does contain timeless principles for living a life pleasing to God and is filled with wisdom to deal with every situation, including gambling. The Bible warn us, however, to stay away from the love of money (1 Timothy 6:10; Hebrews 13:5). Scripture also encourages us to stay away from attempts to get rich quick (Proverbs 13:11; 23:5; Ecclesiastes 5:10). Gambling most definitely is focused on the love of money and undeniably tempts people with the promise of quick and easy riches. 1. Gambling is wrong because it is a disregard of responsible stewardship. The Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:1430) indicates that the good and faithful servants administered the talents entrusted to them in such a way that the master was pleased. The wicked and slothful servant failed in his administration and suffered the appropriate consequences. 2. Gambling is wrong because it involves a chance of gain at the expense and suffering of others. The nature of gambling is such that a person has a chance of gain only because others have suffered loss. The economic benefits come only to a very few. The financial loss is borne by many who usually can least afford it. The principle of love will prevent Christians from gambling because of the damage it does to others. The principle of love will cause Christians to oppose any effort by the state or any other organization to legalize any activity based on a weakness of people which degrades society 3. Gambling is wrong because it is inconsistent with the work ethic of Scripture. When we were with you, we gave you this rule: If a man will not work, he shall not eat (2 Thessalonians 3:10). Not only does the Bible require that one should work for the necessities of life, but it also warns against the something for nothing, get-rich-quick approach. One eager to get rich will not go unpunished (Proverbs 28:20). He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil [envious] eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him (Proverbs 28:22, KJV). Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow (Proverbs 13:11). 4. Gambling is wrong because it tends to be habit forming. The Word of God points out that a Christian will refuse to be brought under the power even of lawful things (1 Corinthians 6:12). The person indwelled by the Holy Spirit will be characterized by temperance, or self-control (Galatians 5:23). His Word that Christians are not to allow their minds or bodies to be mastered by anything other than the Holy Spirit of God (1 Cor. 6:12). Sovereignty of God. Belief in luck and belief in a sovereign God are mutually exclusive, for if an omniscient, omnipotent Creator God exists then luck makes no sense.. Chance without God is the personification of anarchy and nihilism. God controls, not chance (Amos 3:6) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Since Scripture does not speak directly on gambling, I believe we must beware of blanket condemnations and sweeping generalizations. We must beware of making ourselves judges of the motives of the heart. Can we make the judgment, Such and such always involves greed and hope of unearned gain. If you do it, you must be greedy. We also must beware of letting ourselves become judges or courts of appeal to whom people come for our ruling on every specific problem that arises. We must also beware of judging by a double standard so that we can be accused of inconsistency. For example, if we oppose all gambling on the grounds that it provides strong temptations to sin, we must oppose drinking on the same grounds. If we oppose all gambling on the grounds that it is poor stewardship, dont we have to oppose smoking and many forms of luxurious entertainment on the same grounds? I think the whole history of the churchs view of insurance warns us of the danger of making sweeping generalizations and judging motives, even on the basis of general Scriptural principles.

We can put gambling activities on a continuum from serious/illegal (eg. Mafia-sponsored gambling dens) where the idea is to rob suckers for the benefit of the criminally rich through casinos where the odds are stacked against ordinary people, to fun (a once-a-year sweep, perhaps Bingo). Then theres the guilt-byassociation extension: some Christian city missions etc. would not accept monetary gifts where gambling was involved. (By the same logic, a conscientious teetoller should not buy from supermarkets that sell liquor. We must allow one another to choose the point along this continuum consistent with principle-forus. However we can flatly say that any gambling which is illegal, which is based on greed or a desire to profit at anothers expense, or which is against ones own conscience is wrong and must be avoided. But what if a person objects that none of these applies a particular case? There are still very serious questions which a Christian must raise about participation in gambling. Here are some factors/motivations which have helped me come to a more informed position: 1. Am I unnecessarily exposing myself to temptations to sin? Am I forgetting that I too still have a sinful nature subject to greed and selfishness? Am I underestimating the compulsive hold which gambling can gain over a person? 2. Am I tempting someone else with temptations which may be too strong for them? Will I be able to stand before the Lord of all and say that I served all in love? 3. Does my gambling diminish my effectiveness as a Christian witness in my community by raising doubt in the minds of the weak about the sincerity of my Christian faith and life? Can a responsible Christian citizen support activities which time after time have led to increased support, corruption and bribery of public officials, and have created an atmosphere for more and more gambling and polluted the moral climate? Can churches and governments justify using gambling as a substitute for responsible stewardship and responsible taxation? 4. Will I be able to stand before God, and say that I have used His gifts wisely if I have used even a portion of the time, abilities, and possessions he has given me in gambling? 5. The ultimate test: to what extent is my gambling activity an act of love for and service to others rather than for selfish gain? Pastors/Christian leaders have a responsibility not only in advising and guiding in particular cases, but in our regular teaching of sanctification, particularly the 7th, 9th, and 10th commandments. However, I do not believe our responsibility is to be arbiters who are called upon to make a definitive ruling in every case of casuistry, but to be shepherds of the soul who provide our members with solid Scriptural guidelines on the basis of which they as Christians can reach God-pleasing decisions with regard to gambling and any involvement in it. ------------------------------------------------------------The pros or good thing about gambling, is that gambling is used to punish the wicked. Gambling is like robbing the wicked of their wealth. As we read in Proverbs, "The fool and his money are soon departed." Those who scorn the righteous go gamble what they have, and come back with nothing. That is their punishment. Proverbs 16:33 says, The lot is cast in the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord. Summary Gambling is a difficult issue because if it is done in moderation and only on occasion, it is a waste of money, but it is not necessarily evil. People waste money on all sorts of activities. Gambling is no more or less of a waste of money than seeing a movie (in many cases), eating an unnecessarily expensive meal, or purchasing a worthless item. At the same time, the fact that money is wasted on other things does not justify gambling. Money should not be wasted. Excess money should be saved for future needs or given to the Lord's work, not gambled away.

Every leisure activity is not a sin, but all sin is not clearly listed in the Bible. Added to that, God doesn't just want us not to sin, but he gives us an even higher goal. The Bible encourages us to consider our activities in this way: "Everything is permissible for me"but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible for me" but I will not be mastered by anything. (1 Corinthians 6:12, NIV) This verse appears again in 1 Corinthians 10:23, with the addition of this idea: "Everything is permissible"but not everything is constructive." When an activity is not distinctly described as sin in the Bible, we can ask ourselves these questions: "Is this activity beneficial for me or will it become my master? Will participation in this activity be constructive or destructive to my Christian life and witness?" When the truths of God's Word are considered, the Christian should not adopt a neutral stance on gambling. May God bless you as you prayerfully consider this matter as it applies to your own life and convictions. Whatever you do, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

How Poker Is Not Gambling The reason is that in poker you are not playing your cards, but you are playing the other players. I liken poker to any game involving competition. In chess, you are not playing based on luck, but you are playing with a person, against his playing style and building a strategy to beat the other player. I like to think of poker as a paid sports competition. When I played softball, I had to pay a $30 league fee, plus I had to buy my own equipment. Poker is the same, but I have a shot at winning money by winning the game. I'm currently playing $2/$4 holdem. I like to have 30 times the big blind as my entry fee. So I'm walking in with a $120 bankroll to play. If I lose it, I lose my entry fee. If I win, I walk home with money. At $2/$4, I consider winning coming home with a $20 profit. Although I have come home with more than $120 on occasion. After my little diatribe, I need to bring the Bible into this. There are no references to playing poker in the Bible. There is no reference to baseball, basketball or football. These are all games. Games involving competition, strategy and skill. The difference is that in poker, you can lose everything if you're not careful and if you allow the game to control your life. It takes humility to keep you from taking risks, you're not prepared to take and it take maturity and supernatural self-control to keep you from allowing the game to ruin your life and testimony. Criticism: Poker requires you to use lies and deceit in order to win. Again, the answer to this is Yes and No. Bluffing is a tool that you need to have in order to win at poker. While this is true, bluffing is not the only tool. You need an understanding of odds. You need to have the ability to understand your opponent and the ability to read their hands and make decisions based on that. When playing any game, like chess, bridge, gin, basketball, and football, you need to understand your opponent and how they approach the game. You need to anticipate how they play and then come up with a way to counter their tendancies. Every game you play required "bluffing". In every game you play, you are not going to advertise your next movie. When playing chess, you do not say to your opponent, "Hey, before you make your next move, I'm going to attack your queen, so you better focus your next move on protecting your queen." No, you disguise your next move using deception. In baseball, you don't tell the batter that you're going to throw a fastball, low and away. In fact, a baseball player may throw a sinker that drops just before it reaches the plate. In fact, the sinkerball, looks like a fastball but does not follow a straight path. That my friend, is deception. And it's a part of the game. My point is that poker is a game, not gambling. There are rules and tactics to the game and lying is one of them. There are elements of lying and deceit in every game in the world. So if you can use these tools in a game situation, then don't play any game ever. On the other hand, do not take lying and deceit into the real world. Your marriage is not a game. Raising children is not a game. Working hard at your job is not a game. It requires honesty and open communication. All games require the use of deception to win. But remember life is not a game.