Gambling: Is It Right
or Wrong?
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Gambling Defined:
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The American Heritage Dictionary: “1. a.
To bet money on the outcome of a game,
contest, or other event. b. To play a game of
chance for money or other stakes. 2. To take
a risk in the hope of gaining an advantage;
speculate. -- tr. 1. To put up in gambling; to
wager. 2. To expose to hazard; to risk. -- n.
1. A bet, wager, or other gambling venture. 2.
An act or undertaking of uncertain outcome; a
risk....
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Gambling Defined:
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Webster’s New International Dictionary:
“to play a game for money or other
stake...hence: to stake money or any other
thing of value upon an uncertain event; to
hazard; wager.
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Gambling Defined:
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R. Creighton Buck: “In its more limited
sense it means an effort to gain something
of value by risking the loss of something
on a matter of chance. Gambling appeals to
two basic traits of human nature, the desire for
gain and the exhilarating thrill of uncertainty.”
(“Gaming and Gambling,” Vol. 10, Colliers
Encyclopedia CD-ROM)
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Three Essential Features to
Gambling:
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There is a “PAY OFF” a prize of money or
merchandise.
There is a “CHANCE” the awarding of the
pay-off must be based on a chance.
There is a “WAGER” The eligibility for the
prize is dependent on the payment or the
agreement to pay the players involved.
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Gambling is more than
taking a risk, it is placing
a wager on a risk.
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Gambling is placing a wager on a
risk.
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Contrive or manufacture a risk
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The winner is determined by chance or
luck and not skill
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Little control over the circumstances
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Gambling is placing a wager on a
risk.
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It is a risk that most times involves little
physical effort.
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It is a risk that involves a disproportionate
return.
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It is a risk that we seek to win at the
expense of others.
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Nothing of value is being produced.
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Many activities involve a risk but are not
gambling:
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Farming is not the same thing as
gambling.
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Investing in the stock market is not
gambling.
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Buying insurance is not gambling.
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Winning a sweepstakes is not the same as
gambling.
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Gambling Consist of Things Like:
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Raffles
Lotteries
Betting pools
Playing card games for money
Playing dice for money
Slot machines
Betting on horse races, dog races, ball games,
elections, etc.
Playing bingo for money
Playing Bunko for money
Casino games
Etc.
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“Gambler’s Anonymous Booklet”: “Any betting
or wagering, whether for money or
not, no matter how slight or
insignificant, where the outcome is
uncertain or depends upon chance or
‘skill,’ constitutes gambling.”
(Quoted in Bob Buchanon, Those
Impossible Years, p. 38)
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Stafford North: “Gambling is the
act of risking what is yours in
order to get what belongs to
another with nothing given in
return.” (Quoted in Stan
Caldwell, “Gambling,” The
Reminder, Nov. 19, 1989,
3:10:2)
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IS GAMBLING WRONG?
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Gambling is wrong if it is motivated by
covetousness.
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Epithumeo
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Thayer: “prop. to keep the thumos turned upon
a thing, hence [cf. our to set one’s heart
upon] to have a desire for, long for; absol. to
desire [A.V. lust], Jas. iv. 2; to lust after, covet,
of those who seek things forbidden....”
Vine: “to fix the desire upon (epi, upon,
used intensively, thumos, passion), whether
things good or bad; hence, to long for, lust
after, covet....”
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Epithumia
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BAGD: “desire, longing, craving. 1. as a neutral
term, as predom. in secular Gk.... 2. in a good
sense....have a longing for someth....eagerly desire....
3. in a bad sense as a desire for someth.
forbidden…
Thayer: “desire, craving, longing....spec. desire for
what is forbidden, lust…
Vine: “a desire, craving, longing, mostly of
evil desires, frequently translated ‘lust,’…
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Pleonexia
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BAGD: “greediness, insatiableness, avarice,
covetousness, lit. ‘a desire to have more’....”
Thayer: “greedy desire to have more, covetousness,
avarice....plur. various modes in which
covetousness shows itself, covetings....”
Vine: “covetousness, lit., a desire to have more
(pleon, more, echo, to have), always in a bad
sense....”
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IS GAMBLING WRONG?
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Gambling is wrong if it is motivated by
covetousness.
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Gambling is wrong if it results in
slothfulness and laziness.
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Gambling is wrong if it violates the law of
love.
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Gambling is wrong if it makes you an
unfaithful steward of God’s blessings.
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IS GAMBLING WRONG?
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Gambling is wrong if it enslaves you to it.
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Gambling is wrong if it harms your influence
and example as a Christian.
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IS GAMBLING WRONG?
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Gambling is wrong if it enslaves you to it.
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Gambling is wrong if it harms your influence
and example as a Christian.
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Gambling is wrong if it bears bad fruit.
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Gambling is wrong if it is questionable in
your own mind.
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IS GAMBLING WRONG?
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Gambling is wrong if it takes you down
the road to sin.
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Gambling is wrong is it violates the
laws of the land.
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ARGUMENTS FOR GAMBLING
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The Bible does not say, “Thou shall not
gamble”
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“Why not gamble, all of life is a gamble.”
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Certain kinds of gambling are legal.
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“The money is used for a good cause.”
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ARGUMENTS FOR GAMBLING
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“Gambling adds excitement to the game.”
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“Those who gamble are willing
participants.”
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“God’s people cast lots in the Bible.”
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“Gambling is all right as long as the stakes
are small and no one gets hurt.”
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“I only gamble in moderation.”
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