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Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
Merriam-Webster, - to play a game for
money or property
American Heritage® Dictionary - To bet on
an uncertain outcome, as of a contest. - To
play a game of chance for stakes. - To take
a risk in the hope of gaining an advantage
or a benefit.
World Book Encyclopedia: "Gamblers
usually bet money or something else of
value as a stake on the outcome they
predict. When the outcome is settled, the
winner collects the loser's stakes."
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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1. The Uncertain Event - It is
arbitrarily determined.
2. The Stake - Wager or bet
that is deliberately
chanced.
3. A Winner And Loser – one
loses a possession
wagered while the
winner takes it from him !
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 The amount of money or
the value of the thing
risked does not alter the
Biblical principles violated.
 For one to consistently
object to another’s
gambling, he must totally
abstain.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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“Gambling, for the compulsive
gambler is defined as follows: Any
betting or wagering, for self or
others, whether for money or not,
no matter how slight or
insignificant, where the outcome is
uncertain or depends upon chance
or ‘skill’ constitutes gambling.” (Gambler’s Anon. Web page)
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Casino gambling: slot machines, roulette wheels,
dice and card games, numbers games, etc., played
for stakes.
Betting on horses, dogs.
Lotteries.
Bingo, raffles - Charity or “church-sponsored”
Bazaar and fair booths - where you pay to try
to win a prize, etc.
 Amateur gambling - including poker games
for money, Betting on the outcome of athletic
events . . office pools, matching quarters for
cokes or coffee, playing marbles for keeps.




W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 The casting of lots - was not gambling, but a
means of making a decision. - Acts 1:26.
 Taking a risk – To cross a street - The farmer is
not seeking to gain at the loss of another.
 Buying and selling stock - an investment, not
gambling.
 Buying insurance - A honest business
transaction – protecting self and family.
 Prizes - When one registers to win a prize that
is given away for advertisement, etc.
 Competition for a prize – Not a wagered
possession but won by skill and fair
competition
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Over $500,000,000,000 (500 billion) a year
in United States (More than combined
expenses of Medicare & Medicaid).
 According to the 2006 Gross Annual
Wager Report, Americans lost nearly $91
billion on all forms of gambling combined.
 The National Gambling Impact Study
Commission (NGISC) noted that
Americans spend more on gambling than
on recorded music, theme parks, video
games, spectator sports and movie tickets
combined.
Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Americans lost $32.4 billion gambling
in commercial (non-Indian) casinos
alone (2006).
 11 states house about 460 separate
commercialized (non-Indian) casinos.
The casinos' combined gross revenue in
2006 was $34.1 billion
 48 states have some form of legalized
gambling. Hawaii and Utah remain the
only gambling-free states.
Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 “Lotteries are the most-played form of
legalized gambling in the U.S.” In 1997
Americans wagered $35.8 billion on
lotteries. ($135 for every man woman &
child in nation).
 1963 Lotteries were banned in every
state. Now 43 states & D.C. have
lotteries. The seven remaining states
that do not have lotteries are: AL, AK,
HI, MS, NV, UT and WY
Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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On November 4, 2008, voters
approved a measure that allows
a state lottery in Arkansas. It will
become the 43d state to sell
lottery tickets since New
Hampshire started the first
modern U.S. lottery in 1964.
Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
 The Greeks in Homer's time had
knucklebones from sheep and
goats that were marked to serve
as dice.
 A gambling board was
discovered in Crete that dates
back to 1800-1900 B.C.
 Tertullian said, "If you say that
you are a Christian when you are
a dice player, you say what you
are not, because you are a partner
with the world."
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 Pathological gambling
is one of the fastestgrowing mental health
problems in the
western world. - (New
England Journal of
Medicine, 10/5/00)
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
 The “motor” for gambling is sinful
– 1 Cor. 6:9,10; 1 Tim 6:9,10
 "Greed" is an eager desire for base
gain – Ez. 22:12
 "Covetousness" is translated from
two Greek words. One means a
"greedy desire to have more." The
second literally means "loving
money.“ – Eph. 5:5
 If winnings were removed would Casino’s and lotteries still
prosper?
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 Christians are to be
responsible before God in
how they invest the resources
entrusted to them,  Good stewards will be
blessed - Luke 12:42,43;
 Must glorify God - 1 Peter
4:10,11;
 Must be faithful - 1 Cor
4:1,2
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 For one to win at gambling,
others must lose –
 Gambling is predicated on the
losses, pain, and suffering of
others - Gambling preys on the
desperation of the poor
 A Christian is NOT to take
advantage of another – Prov.
14:31; 22:16; Hos. 12:7; Zec.
17:10; Phili 2:4; Mat. 7:12; 22:39;
Gal. 5:13,14
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Gambling is the attempt to
obtain the resources of others
without providing equal value
in return
 Four means of scriptural gain:
 By honest work – Pro. 13:11
 By fair exchange – Eph 4:28
 By investment – Mt 25:14-30
 By gift – Acts 20:35
 Gambling is consensual theft
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
 The existence of Gamblers
Anonymous implies that
gambling can be addictive! – 1
Cor. 6:12; 2 Tim 3:3; 2 Pet. 1:6
 GA has grown rapidly – “the
Number of Gamblers Anonymous
Chapters Has Grown Rapidly. In
1960, there were 16 chapters in the
U.S. This number grew to 130 in
1970, and by 1988, 600 chapters
existed.”
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ADDICTION: “estimates list
approximately 2.5 million people
as pathological gamblers, another
3 million as problem gamblers,
and another 15 million people as
at risk to become problem or
pathological gamblers.”
Gambling Impact Study
Commission, Final Report. Last
Update: Jan. 28, 2001
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Destroys One’s
reputation Proverbs 22:1
 Could lead others
into sin - Mat 18:6;
Rom 14:13; 1 Cor.
8:13
 Destroys one’s
influence - Mat
5:13,14; Phili 2:15
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Associated with works of the flesh
– Gal. 5:19-21
Family Problems
Child abuse
Spousal abuse
Divorce
Don McClain
Suicide
General population 1.1%
Members of Gamblers
Anon. - 13%
General Crime
Organized crime
–in Gambling
Areas
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
“The tragedy of gambling
addiction reaches far beyond the
more than 15 million Americans
who are problem or pathological
gamblers. Employers, work
associates, friends, and taxpayers
often pay a steep price as well.
However, it is family members
who bear the brunt of the pain and
misery that accompanies this
addiction. In addition to material
deprivations, family members
frequently experience the trauma
of divorce, child abuse and neglect,
and domestic violence.”
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
Ronald A. Reno Gambling's Impact on Families
http://www.family.org/cforum/research/papers/A0013
772.html
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 Calls to the Gulf Coast
Women’s Center crisis line
doubled within the first
three years of the casinos,
to an average of 800 a
month.
 In Biloxi, the number of
domestic violence
incidents reported to
authorities rose from 167 in
1992 to 715 in 1996, a 328%
increase.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Six hundred fifty
additional divorces were
granted in Harrison
County the year after
casinos arrived.
 Longtime Gulf Coast
chancery court Judge
William L. Stewart said
gambling is now a factor in
at least a third of the
divorce cases he oversees.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
 The National Gambling
Impact Study Commission
reported: "Children of
compulsive gamblers are
often prone to suffer abuse,
as well as neglect, as a
result of parental problem
or pathological gambling."
 In Indiana, - 72 children
were found abandoned on
casino premises during a
14-month period.
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 In Louisiana and South
Carolina, children died
after being locked in hot
cars for hours while their
caretakers gambled.
 An Illinois mother was
sentenced to prison for
suffocating her infant
daughter in order to collect
insurance money to
continue gambling.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Gambling establishments are
host to other corrupting vices,
including prostitution and
drunkenness - Christians are to
avoid such environments - 1
Thes 5:21,22; 1 Cor 15:33,34
 Supports an immoral, predatory
and exploitative industry Instead of partaking we are to
expose – Eph. 5:7,11
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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1. The Uncertain Event. It is
arbitrarily determined.
2. The Stake. Wager or bet that is
deliberately chanced.
3. A Winner And Loser – one
loses a possession wagered while
the winner takes it from him!
But Look at the good we can do!
Should We Do Evil That Good May
Come? Rom. 3:8
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Arkansas lottery director had 3rd highest pay
package among 44 state lottery chiefs
By Associated Press
7:00 AM CDT, June 18, 2009
Don McClain
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. -- New Arkansas
lottery director Ernie Passailaigue
(pass-a-lay) has the third highest pay
package among the nation's 44 state
lottery directors. The Arkansas
Democrat-Gazette surveyed the
compensation of state lottery directors
and found that only Georgia and
Tennessee pay their lottery
administrators more than Passailaigue's
$324,000 per year.
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Incoming Arkansas lottery director wants to hire 2
VPs, pay $200K a year each
ANDREW DeMILLO Associated Press Writer
3:59 PM CDT, June 12, 2009
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The
incoming director of Arkansas' lottery
says he wants to hire two vice
presidents to help run the games and
pay each of them at least $200,000
annually. Ernie Passailaigue, . . . told
members of the lottery commission
Friday that he'd like to create a vice
president of games and a vice
president of administration.
Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
NGISC Commissioner Richard C. Leone - June 2001:
"In my view, state lotteries have paved the way for great increases
in legalized gambling. They have promoted the notion of beating
the odds, they have been able to advertise while others have not,
and they have propagated the myth that gambling is good for
society in general and the government in particular. Lotteries are
perhaps the hardest form of gambling to justify in terms of their
costs and benefits. The best studies all point in the same direction:
Lotteries prey on the poor and the undereducated.”
Leone, Richard C., (The Century Foundation-www.tcf.org) Statement at CASA
Conference, 2001. "High Stakes: Substance Abuse & Gambling".
http://www.ncalg.org/news-leone.htm
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Has all three elements,
1. The Uncertain Event.
2. The Stake.
3. A Winner And Loser.
 Are we training our children
that gambling is a legitimate
means of raising money by
selling raffle tickets to raise
money for social events and
organizations?
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 Gambling is not harmless
entertainment.
 It is a greed-driven, predatory
vice, scientifically designed to
squeeze the maximum amounts of
money possible from every single
patron.
 It is by its very nature an
enterprise wholly dependent on
victims - James C. Dobson, Ph.D.
1999 Focus on the Family.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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 The spread of legalized gambling
is exacting colossal social and
economic costs.
 Gambling expansion brings with it
increased crime, divorce and
family disruption, and it creates a
multitude of new addicts.
 Gambling also exploits the poor
and youth.
 Legalized gambling is harmful
public policy that should be
vigorously opposed at all levels.
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Titus 2:11-12 (NKJV)
11 For the grace of God that
brings salvation has
appeared to all men,
12 teaching us that, denying
ungodliness and worldly
lusts, we should live soberly,
righteously, and godly in the
present age,
W. 65th
Don
McClain
St church of Christ - June 21, 2009
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Don McClain
W. 65th St church of Christ - June 21, 2009