Wealth should be built up slowly through diligence
Prov. 13:4, ‘The soul of a lazy man desires and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich.’
Prov. 20:21, ‘An inheritance gained hastily at the beginning will not be blessed at the end.’
Prov. 28:20, ‘A faithful man will abound with blessings, but he who hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.’
1 Thess. 4:11, ‘…aspire to lead a quiet life, to mind your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you…’
Wealth can be amassed quickly without diligence
Gambling entices people with the promise of becoming rich overnight. It replaces the Biblical concept of labour with the secular theory of luck.
The Twentieth Century Fund research group commented, ‘Gambling's get-rich-quick appeal appears to mock capitalism's core values: Disciplined work habits, thrift, prudence, adherence to routine, and the relationship between effort and reward.’
It is a Sin to Covet
Ex. 20:17, ‘You shall not covet…’
Lk. 12:15, ‘And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.’
Heb. 13:5, ‘Let your conduct be without covetousness…’
Covetousness
The gambling industry encourages covetousness.
Be Content in All Things
Phil. 4:11, ‘for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content…’
1 Tim. 6:6-8, ‘Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.’
Heb. 13:5, ‘be content with such things as you have.’
Discontentment
Gambling encourages dissatisfaction with the means God has given you.
Do Not Worship Mammon
1 Tim. 6:9-10, ‘But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.’
Mt. 6:24, ‘No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.’
Mammon Worship
Gambling turns money into an idol, substituting the worship of God with the worship of mammon. It is one of the many forms of state-sponsored greed.
Exercise Self-Control
Gal. 5:22-26, ‘But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.’
1 Peter 1:5-7, ‘But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.’
Loss of Self-Control
The gambling industry thrives on creating addicts. As people become slaves to the jackpot, they lose their self-control.
Wealth comes through hard work
Gen. 3:17 & 19, ‘In toil you shall eat of [the ground] all the days of your life…. In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground…
Prov. 13:11, ‘Wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished, but he who gathers by labour will increase.’
2 Thess. 3:10-12, ‘If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. For we hear that there are some who walk among you in a disorderly manner, not working at all, but are busybodies. Now those who are such we command and exhort through our Lord Jesus Christ that they work in quietness and eat their own bread.’
Wealth comes easy if you’re lucky
Gambling fosters the illusion that wealth can be gained without hard work. It breeds a something-for-nothing attitude.
In winning, one obtains the wages that another person has earned but without having to give anything in exchange.
Laziness Is a Sin
Prov. 6:6-11 directs the lazy person to imitate the industry of the ant. The passage concludes in warning those who avoid honest work that ‘poverty [shall] come on you like a prowler, and your need like an armed man.’
Prov. 20:4, ‘The lazy man will not plough because of winter; He will beg during harvest and have nothing.’
Prov. 21:25, ‘The desire of the lazy man kills him, for his hands refuse to labour.’
Attitude of a Sluggard
Gambling encourages a culture of laziness, luring people by the promise of leisure and ease.
Like the sluggard who sleeps during harvest, a gambler wastes time that could be spent with family or in church work.
A Man Should Provide For His Household
Prov. 13:22, ‘A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children, but the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.’
1 Tim. 5:8, ‘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.’
2 Cor. 12:13, ‘For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.’
Do Not Provide For Your Household
The history of gambling is filled with stories of men gambling away their fortunes and leaving their families destitute.
Even when this does not occur, money is wasted that could be saved for a child’s inheritance, spent on family needs, used to care for elderly parents and relatives or given to the church.
It is A Sin To Oppress the Poor
Prov. 22:22-23, ‘Do not rob the poor because he is poor, nor oppress the afflicted at the gate, for the Lord will plead their cause and plunder the soul of those who plunder them.’
Exploit The Poor To Make Money
When a casino comes to an area, the poor get poorer and the rich get wealthier. Wealth is redistributed on an inequitable basis.
Government Should be a Terror to Evil
Rom.
13:3, ‘For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil.’
Is. 10:1, ‘Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, who write misfortune which they have prescribed.’
Isaiah 5:20-23, ‘Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!’
State-Sponsored Evil
Legalised gambling is a state-sponsored vice, a means to transfer money from the poor to the friends of Government.
As such, legalised gambling undercuts the Government’s duty to bring order to society and promote public virtue.
