Gambling: Both A Moral Menace and an Evangelistic Opportunity for the Remnant Church
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
Since the entrance of sin into the human family, nearly every culture on earth seems to have developed some form of the practice of gambling. But with the ad- vent of the Reformation—and especially the Second Great Awakening (1795-1835)—most Christian de- nominations condemned gambling as a sinful vice and considered it to be entirely improper to be engaged in by anyone with morals based on the Bible. And the Spirit of Prophecy within Advent- ism accepted and even amplified that assessment:
“Satan has invented many ways in which to squander the means which God has given. Card playing, betting, gambling, horse-racing, and theatrical performances are all of his own inventing.” (RH, March 31, 1896, par. 5)
“Men become engrossed with games, with horse races, with gambling, smoking, and drunkenness…They make it evident that they do not stand under the banner of the Prince of life, but that the prince of darkness rules and controls them.”(CT343)
“The transgressors of God’s law are filling the earth with wickedness. Their betting, their horse racing, their gambling…are fast filling the earth with violence.” (DA633)
Not only was gambling denounced by many churches as a sin, it was also legally outlawed for generations as a crime by the civil authorities in a number of predominately Chris- tian countries like the United States. But clearly, the moral tide against gambling has been reversed. Gambling is now almost universally accepted and approved of. Anti-gambling laws have been repealed and many governments actually operate state-run lotteries as a source of revenue. Casinos, once mostly prohibited, are now easily accessible nearly everywhere. Most recently, sports betting has taken the gambling world by storm. And with the current general acceptance of gambling, there is little doubt and good evidence that many professed Christians and even some who claim to be members of the remnant church have assimilated a favorable attitude toward this practice and have been ensnared by the tantalizing temptation to gamble.
Other than general warnings against desiring to gain riches quickly (See: Prov. 28:19-22), the Bible does not appear to speak to the gambling process specifically either by precept
or example. But as Seventh-day Adventists, we know by direct revelation through the Spirit of Prophecy that gambling is definitely a sin with a demonic derivation.
Why Gambling Is Immoral
But what exactly is it about gambling that makes it evil? If it is wrong, why is it wrong? While they may not have stated it in precisely these terms, what our spiritually enlightened Christian ancestors apparently perceived was that gambling is in fact a satanically disguised form of theft in which the winners have in reality stolen what they won from the losers. As a result, the losers are defrauded of valuable assets; and the winners are morally depraved by the delusion that it is legitimate to live off of the industry and productivity of others.
To unmask gambling’s apparently innocent moral masquerade, one must recognize certain motivational facts of human nature: Nobody puts money or other assets* into the kitty desiring to give them to another player. Each player contributes their valuables to the pot not because they want to give them to somebody else; but only because they want to get them back and more besides. The “more besides” being somebody else’s valuables for which they have given nothing of value in return. In all legitimate business transactions, money is exchanged only when one party compensates the other party by providing goods or services of real value. But gambling is a totally self-centered enterprise where each is just trying to get something for nothing. The players have no intention of giving their money to the other players as a free handout if they can avoid doing so.
So, when the winner takes possession of the pot, do the other players want to give the money that they put into it to the winner? Obviously not! They may be forced to do so by the rules of the game; but they certainly don’t actually desire to give their valuables to the winner. Therefore, since the winner ends up taking something of value from someone who didn’t want to give it to him, the winner is actually stealing and breaking the Eighth Commandment which says plainly, “Thou shall not steal.” (Exodus 20:15) So the Scriptures do in fact address the immoral principle on which the gambling procedure is based; but humanity, in general, has failed to recognize this application of a straightforward moral requirement. But since the players are involved of their own free will, few people are able to discern that an act of theft has taken place. Again, the point being that the loser does not actually desire to give the winner his money or other goods of value. (If he really did, he would simply make a gift of his assets without going through the charade of a game of chance.) Taking something of worth from another person who has no real intention of transferring ownership is a basic definition of stealing. But this is exactly what the winner does every time he or she takes possession of the jackpot.
Since all parties are willing participants, does that make such arrangements morally ethical? Let’s consider a similar situation. When a drug dealer sells his illegal narcotics to a willing buyer, does the willingness of both the buyer and the seller somehow relieve either person of their guilt for engaging in this immoral arrangement? Not at all! Both are still under condemnation for their sinful actions. And other transactions of an even more degenerate nature could be described to prove that willing involvement does not automatically absolve a person of moral responsibility.
As all dedicated Christians recognize, our Creator God is the true owner of this world and all that it contains. (See: Ps. 24:1) We are merely stewards of our Heavenly Father’s possessions and will be held accountable in the judgment for what we did with His property. Therefore, in the final analysis, everyone who participates in the gambling process is a thief. The winners have taken something of value from those who didn’t want to give it to them. And the losers have stolen from themselves, from their families, and from God the money that should have been used to supply the legitimate necessities of life or been contributed to spread the gospel and support the work of God on earth to hasten His coming.
Justifications for Gambling Refuted
But not only is it difficult to perceive the thievery inherent in gambling, satan and his agents have also attempted to protect it from criticism and condemnation by fabricating numerous excuses to justify participation in gambling** or “gaming” as it is now often referred to. (Using the word “gaming” as a synonym for gambling is a subtle means to make gambling appear to be simply an innocent and harmless “game” for all to enjoy.) So let’s carefully examine these deceptive rationalizations that have been popularized to make gambling seem to be morally unobjectionable.
Excuse #1: “I pay my bills and take care of my family first. I only gamble the money I can afford to lose.” Moral reality: Even if a person does not deprive his family by the money he loses when gambling, he is still morally responsible for dissipating precious resources that should have been put to a better use by donating those funds to the church or to some worthy charity as a blessing to mankind. The amount of a wager has nothing to do with the fact that a person has stolen from God and his fellow man by wasting his money for no good purpose. Whether a person bets only one dollar or one million dollars, they are still guilty of thievery. Just because there is enough money left over to support one’s family after they stop gambling does not negate their culpability for consuming assets that could have supported the work of the Lord or helped the needy.
Excuse #2: “Gambling is okay as long as you don’t get addicted.” Moral reality: It makes no difference how often you gamble. A thief is a thief. Whether you do it only now and then or are addicted and gamble a hundred times a week. Each time you gamble, you are committing an act of theft — either from God or from other people.
Excuse #3: “When I win, I’ll give the church or some good charity a large donation. So my gambling will actually end up as a blessing to others and the Lord’s work.” Moral reality: God said, “You shall not bring the hire [wages or earn- ings] of a harlot…into the house of the Lord thy God.” (Deut. 23: 18 NASB) In other words, God wants nothing to do with offerings or contributions that have been acquired by immoral means. And to donate money to a charity that has been obtained by defrauding one’s fellow man through the gambling mechanism is a covert kind of hypocrisy.
Excuse #4: “In this area, the only gambling legally per- mitted is charitable gambling; so any money I might lose goes to support good humanitarian organizations. Therefore, my gambling actually functions as a blessing to my fellow man.” Moral reality: The only real motivation to use gambling to support charities is to appeal to mankind’s inherent self-cen- teredness. The players are actuated by selfishness and the de- sire to get and not to give. If the players really wanted to help the charities, they would just make a direct donation and eliminate the costs and waste inevitably involved in the administrations of a government gambling bureaucracy. Additionally, if the players do win, every dollar they may obtain has in reality been stolen from the other players and is recorded as such in the books of heaven. And without confession, repentance, and restitution, this money will stand as a testimony against them in the day of judgment.
Excuse #5: Probably the most pervasive and persuasive excuse used to justify gambling is the one that equates gambling with the business of farming. It goes something like this: “Well, there’s nothing wrong with farming. And we all know that farming is the biggest gamble there is.” Moral re- ality: Comparing gambling with farming or other business ventures that involve risk is a very popular example of the sloppy thinking that satan has used to generate the general approval that the vice of gambling now enjoys. Those who use this excuse to rationalize their gambling activity are failing to make the vital distinction between gambling and taking a risk. Gambling and taking a risk are not the same thing. What’s the difference? The difference is that when you’re in a business like farming, which certainly involves risks, you are permitted to do everything you can do to reduce the risk of failure and make it more likely that the results will be positive rather than negative. A farmer does not haphazardly throw some seeds on the ground and merely hope, as the gambler must do, for a good outcome. The good farmer studies which seed variety is best for his particular soil and climate conditions. He carefully cultivates his fields and plants the seeds at just the right time and at just the right depth. He adds the right fertilizer to the soil as needed and eliminates the weeds at just the right time by the most effective means possible. He then harvests the crop at just the right stage of maturity and moisture content, etc. He does all this to minimize the risk of a poor crop and to maximize the pro- spect that the harvest will be plentiful and his profits greater. Yes, there is still the risk beyond his control that drought, hail, or wind may damage or destroy the crop. But the farmer is expected to do everything within his power to improve the possibility of producing an abundant harvest and increasing his income.
Are you permitted to do this when gambling? Are gamblers allowed to do something to increase the chances of winning by stacking the deck, marking the cards, or loading the dice to make it more likely that the result will be to their benefit. Absolutely not! Doing anything to enhance a gambler’s chances of winning is considered to be cheating and a good way to get yourself injured or even killed by outraged losers. Gamblers are required to simply depend on blind fate and are never permitted to do anything to interfere with the gambling process in order to make it more likely that they will win.
By contrast, farmers and all good businessmen can and are expected to do everything possible to reduce the risk and in- crease the possibilities for prosperity. Therefore, there is a distinct difference between gambling and taking a risk. They are not the same thing. Farmers may indeed be the biggest risk-takers; but they are not the biggest gamblers. When one understands the distinction between gambling and taking a risk, farmers are not in reality true gamblers at all.
Furthermore, even if a farmer fails in the business of farming due to factors beyond his control like the weather or the markets, he has done so in the process of producing something of real value to society. And the same could be said for all other legitimate businesses that provide a product or beneficial service for the community. But the gambler and the gambling process originate none of the necessities of life that improve the nation’s standard of living. Gambling merely transfers wealth from the majority to a very small minority without any real benefit to humanity. As a result, it immorally increases the abundance of the few at the impoverishment and moral degradation all the rest.
Fundamental Conclusions
We should now be able to discern the fallacy of these pro-gambling assertions and conclude, as stated previously, that gambling is a cunningly disguised form of theft and a violation of the commandment against stealing whether one wins or losses. It was judged to be a sin by Christians in the past and should continue to be regarded as such by the followers of Christ in the present. Its immense popularity does not diminish in the least its immorality and is a conspicuous fulfillment of the perceptive poem by Alexander Pope:
Vice is a monster of such terrible mien, That to be hated, needs but be seen.
But seen too oft, familiar with her face, We first endure, then pity, then embrace!
Therefore, without clear warnings and moral guidance from the church concerning this devious and demonic snare of satan, it is nearly inevitable that many sincere Christians will be deceived and then yield to the alluring enticement to gamble. So, in spite of the heart-sickening reality that the approval of and participation in gambling has now invaded our modern
societies like an irresistible tsunami, the church is morally obligated to stand steadfastly against this prevailing iniquity and forcefully remind its members that the biblical command found in Exodus 23:2 still applies to all Christians: “Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil.”
Summary And Moral Applications
Brothers and Sisters in Christ:
Let’s settle in our minds once and for all time this point of truth: Gambling is not wrong simply because it occasionally leads to bad results for a few people such as addiction, financial ruin, broken families, and suicide. Gambling is evil at its very core. Each and every gambling transaction is a covetous act of robbery and a violation of the Eighth and Tenth Commandments. The terrible consequences of gambling emanate naturally from its intrinsic wickedness.
Let’s say that you are given a birthday card with the enclosed gift of a lottery ticket. You scratch it off and find that you’ve just won $5,000. Or, you’re walking down the street, and by chance, you pick up a Megamillion stub off the ground that has literally been blowing in the wind. You check out the numbers and discover that they match for a six-million-dollar payout! Since you didn’t risk your own money in either case, can you cash them in and enjoy the rewards of your “good fortune”? Absolutely not! Morally you would be in receipt of stolen goods.
Or, let’s assume that an Adventist hospital decides to expand its facilities and a civic-minded organization offers to help in the fund-raising with a substantial donation. But it comes to the knowledge of the administration that the proffered contribution has been derived wholly or in part from the operation of a casino. Would it be morally proper for the hospital to accept this gift? Again, certainly not. As stated previously, no offering procured by immoral means is to be used in the support of the Lord’s work. And to receive it would be to condone the morally degenerate means by which it was generated.
Furthermore, true Christians must be careful not to facilitate the vile business of gambling in any way. Jesus pronounced a dire warning against allowing oneself to become a source or avenue of temptation. “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come. It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause [tempt] one of these little ones to sin.” (Luke 17:1-2 ESV)
In regards to the sin of gambling, this can happen primarily in two ways: employment and advertising. No Christian should ever yield to the inducement to earn even a part of their living by being employed at a gambling establishment even if only in a supporting role like doing maintenance or custodial work. (Would it be morally acceptable for an Adventist to work at a bar or a liquor store even if they’re only doing janitorial work? Obviously not! And the same would hold true for being employed at a gambling establishment of any kind.) And great care needs to be taken by Christians who work in any kind of media such as radio, TV, newspapers, billboards, most magazines, or the internet so that they do not profit or participate in the massive amount of advertising that the gambling industry does to promote its morally debasing form of commerce. (Personally, this author is convinced that the secular media is simply no place for an Adventist. How can anyone be employed by these businesses without being involved in one way or another with the immoral promotion of smoking, drinking, gambling, LGBTQ acceptance, or morally corrupting music, movies, entertainment, and violent sports, etc? It’s practically impossible.)
Like other worldly vices such as pornography, prostitution, and the use of alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drugs, the disassociation of devout Christians from gambling must be total and complete! “For what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness?. . .Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you.” (2 Cor. 6: 14,17)
*The obsession with gambling knows no limits. It has been reported that among some people-groups, husbands have even gambled on the possession of their wives!
**Though there are some similarities, gambling should not be confused with free drawings that do not require the payment of money or the purchase of a product to enter and become eligible to win. For various advertising and promotional reasons, large businesses and organizations sometimes offer to give away substantial prizes such as cars, cash, or other items of value and invite the public to participate in a drawing (or sweepstakes as they are sometimes now called) where winners are generally selected at random.
Those who win one of the prizes offered are simply receiving a free gift. Therefore there is nothing intrinsically immoral for the Christians about participating in these free drawings or accepting the prizes should they win. However, they should be sure to return an honest tithe to the Lord on the value of that prize.
Appendix:
Advisable Ecclesiastical Initiatives
In light of all the indisputable moral and spiritual evidence against the practice of gambling, what should the attitude and actions of God’s remnant church be towards gambling?
- Clearly, total abstinence from gambling in all of its many manifestations must be the order of the day for all who claim to be Seventh-day Adventists and desire to develop characters worthy of commendation at the coming of our Savior in glory. Non-participation in gambling should become a foundational standard of Adventist morality in the same way that non-use of alcohol and tobacco are now.
- It would be wise, reasonable, and beneficial to include nonparticipation-in-gambling language in our Adventist baptismal In years past, so few people gambled that it was essentially a non-issue and it was safe to assume that those presenting themselves as candidates for church membership knew and understood that it was morally wrong to gamble. That is simply no longer the case. In fact, the opposite is probably now true. Gambling has now become so common and normal that it should be assumed that baptismal candidates have either participated in gambling or have no real objection to it. Just as we explicitly prohibit the use of
alcohol, tobacco, and the eating of unclean meats in our cur- rent vows, the time has come to do the same with gambling. Doing this would make it absolutely clear to one and all that Seventh-day Adventists condemn gambling as a sin and that it must be eliminated from the lifestyle of anyone who is or desires to be a part of God’s last-day remnant church. This would also present an opportunity for our evangelists, pastors, and members in general to distinguish themselves from the nominal churches of Christendom who cowardly
consent to this immoral vice by saying nothing.
This writer believes that being out-spoken in our opposition to gambling is part of giving the trumpet a “certain sound” in these last days and would be an appealing aspect of our message to the millions of honest-in-heart truth-seekers that we know are now in the fallen churches of Bab- ylon. As the “other sheep who are not of this fold,” they would welcome and be attracted to a genuine Christian fellowship with the courage to stand against this pervasive evil in contrast to the churches that remain silent.
- Since gambling presents so many iterations of itself in the various countries that comprise the world field of Adventism, it would be prudent for Adventist leaders to identify the specific forms of gambling that exist in their area of responsibility and then notify their membership to take heed and avoid them.
- If a church member has yielded to the temptation to gamble, they should be counseled in accordance with Matt. 18:15-18. Some may have gambled in ignorance not even realizing that it was a sin. But in most cases, the one who has fallen into this satanic snare will need to make a public confession in order to counteract as much as possible the immoral influence of their actions and remove the stain that has been made on the reputation of the remnant And if their winnings were in excess of their losses, they should make restitution of that amount by donating it to some secular charity such as the Red Cross so that no one can say that a member professing Adventism was permanently benefited financially through their gambling.
- Since gambling is indeed a species of stealing, the civil governments of the world have every right to prohibit and punish it like every other form of In her day, Sis. White told us that we should support the legal prohibition of alcoholic beverages “by voice, and pen, and vote.” (See Te 254) Certainly, Adventists should do the same in our day concerning gambling by assisting and encouraging the secular authorities in any efforts they might make to legally suppress this evil and corrupting practice.
Surely the time has come as never before for God’s people to recognize gambling for the deceptive and sinful practice that it is and to take a determined, unequivocal, and public stand against it. “We have need of men who … will rebuke gambling and liquor drinking which are such prevalent evils in these last days.” (Te34) Therefore, as God’s remnant church, we must make it explicitly clear that gambling is to have no part whatsoever in the lifestyle of those who are pre- paring for Christ’s return. Furthermore, as the depositaries of God’s law, we are obligated personally and as a church to do all we can to warn the world against this financial, societal, and soul-destroying vice.
Published for the edification of God’s true church by Faithful Remnant Fellowship, 428 Minnesota Street S., Ortonville, MN 56278 (320) 487-2999. LeonardLang1000@Hotmail.com, (May 2023). We would encourage you to request or make more copies of this article and disseminate it among your fellow church members as you may have the opportunity.