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Gambling and the Bible By Dennis Tucker The leading candidate in this year’s Kentucky Governor’s race has stated his support for casino gambling. Keep in mind Kentucky already has race-track betting and a state-run lottery. It is a sign of the times that he probably will win and eventually casinos will be part of the Kentucky landscape. Gambling used to be considered a vice. Now it is promoted as an alternative tax, and even part of one’s civic duty. How has this come about, and what does the Bible say about gambling? That is what we will be looking at in the remainder of this article. Advocates of gambling have been very good at promoting what they call the positives of wagering. Money raised will add to state revenue and hence services. Those who do not want to gamble, do not have to, and those who want to, can. It is touted as a "voluntary tax." Religion has promoted gambling with its bingo games and raffles. Civic organizations have done much the same thing. While living in Oklahoma, I was a member of the Kiwanis Club. One time the club decided to offer chances on a prize. The money would be for a good cause. When a member used the word "chance," he was reminded that gambling was against the law. They were simply accepting donations and offering "opportunities" for a person to win. Call it what you will, it was still gambling. To see how successful and large the gambling industry is, consider the following facts;
We want to look at the "fruits of gambling." Jesus was talking about false teachers who would be ravenous wolves in sheep's clothing when He said, "You will know them by their fruits" (Matthew 7:16). Just as we can judge people by their deeds, we can judge a practice by its consequences.Most people, when asked if they would like a tax that affects the poor more than the wealthy, say no. Yet that is the affect of gambling. The State of Iowa in its study made this point: "Seventy percent of those who buy tickets are poor, black, or Hispanic." A number of years ago, the Miami Herald asked to see lottery sales for the state. The state lottery commission refused to release the information. Why? Because it showed the majority of lottery tickets were sold in poor areas of the state. While wealthy people seek gambling as entertainment, the poor see it as a form of investing.Most people, if asked, would not want a tax where the majority of the money raised went to private companies and only the leftovers went to the state revenue. But, that is exactly what happens with gambling. Sixty percent of the money raised goes to managing, promoting, and running the gambling activity itself—leaving forty percent for the state budget. Most people would not want a tax that would hinder economic growth. Yet, that is what gambling does. Many companies will not enter an area with casinos due to the economic impact of those establishments. Money is siphoned off the local economy and taken away. While living in Tuckerman, we had a local NAPA store to close. The owner went bankrupt due to his gambling habit. Most people would not want to encourage people to be addicted to some activity. Yet, gambling is addictive to many people. It is promoted as a form of entertainment or fun, but to many it becomes much more. Gamblers Anonymous estimates there are over 12 million compulsive gamblers. In Iowa, 5.4% of the population is considered pathological or problem gamblers. Problem gamblers increase over 200% within 50 miles of a casino. The fastest growing age group of problem gamblers is teenagers. To know how addictive gambling can be, one only has to read stories of gamblers in Las Vegas—to hear of people playing slot machines and refusing to leave, staying to the point of falling asleep or urinating while playing. Children are often left alone in cars or hotel rooms for hours while their parents are gambling. Most people would be against an industry that is linked to an increase in crime and family problems. Yet, crime increases where casinos are located. Robbery, extortion, prostitution, stealing, embezzlement, and suicides are linked to gambling. Child and spousal abuse also are connected to gambling. South Dakota Department of Social Services reported a 66% increase in children needing protective services the year after gambling became legal. Deadwood, South Dakota had a 42% increase in child abuse cases within 2 years of legalized gambling. Welfare cases increase when gambling is introduced in an area. This is due to Mom or Dad losing money needed for the family. They turn to the state for help. Gambling also contradicts God’s Law. Just as God created spiritual laws for us to observe, He created physical laws. This includes how we are to make and/or receive money. Man is to work for his living. In the Garden of Eden, God gave man a job, to tend to the garden. When he sinned, God told Adam that he would have to work (Genesis 3.17-19). Various passages teach that man is to work. "For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat" (2 Thessalonians 2.10). "But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever" (1 Timothy 5.8). Those who gamble are not working, but hoping to receive something for nothing. Man can make money by investing. "So you ought to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I would have received back my own with interest" (Matthew 25.27). Using good stewardship and wisely investing one’s money is a God-approved way of making money. Gambling is not an investment, but simply a game of chance in hopes of winning money. What bank would approve a business loan when the applicant says I want to use the money on the state lottery? Receiving money as a gift of inheritance is also approved by God. The Law of Moses governed how wealth was to be divided among a family when a member died. We are to help those in need (James 2). The money won in gambling is not a gift or one’s inheritance. Given a choice, the losers would want to have their money back. Gambling is a form of legalized stealing. Taxes are an authorized way for the government to receive money. "For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God's ministers attending continually to this very thing" (Rom 13:6). Spending money at a state-run casino is not the same as paying one’s taxes. Answers to some common arguments for gambling: All of life is a risk; driving is a risk, so gambling is just another risk. Some equate horse racing to farming, starting a business, or buying stocks in a business. The difference is not whether one is taking a chance on success or failure. A farmer having a good crop does not mean his neighbor must experience crop failure. In other words, one’s success does not come at the expense of others. It is for a good cause. State lotteries have been promoted as a means to fund education. How about legalizing prostitution? We could then regulate and tax it. The money could go for AIDS research or some other worthy cause. How about legalizing meth, crack cocaine, marijuana, and other illegal drugs. We could tax the industry and use it for other good causes? It is legal, so it must be alright. The problem with gambling is not whether it is illegal but that it is against the Word of God. I don’t expect to win, but want to make a donation. We are some times sympathetic to a worthy cause and want to help. So we buy that ticket for the cause and not the "baked ham" or "hand made quilt." We are still buying a chance where our winning means others must lose. If you want to make a donation, then simply do that. People may think you are strange when you refuse to buy a ticket and still give them money, but we are to be different from the world. —Dennis Tucker |