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Does the Bible Condemn Gambling? – ♠️♣️♥️♦️?♦️♥️♣️♠️


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“You men are those leaving Jehovah, those forgetting my holy mountain, those setting in order a table for the god of Good Luck and those filling up mixed wine for the god of Destiny.” (Isaiah 65:11)

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Does the Bible Condemn Gambling?

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The Lure of Luck

Since gambling involves betting on uncertainties, belief in luck—a mysterious force that supposedly controls random events—plays a large role, especially when money is wagered. For example, auspicious numbers are chosen for lottery tickets; the uttering of certain words is forbidden among superstitious mah-jongg players; and a puff of air is blown over dice before they are thrown. Why? Gamblers often believe that luck will, or at least might, influence the outcome.

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Is it merely a harmless game to put one’s trust in luck? Some people in ancient Israel felt that way. They believed that luck could bring them prosperity. How did Jehovah God feel about the matter? In God’s eyes, belief in luck is a form of idolatry and is not compatible with true worship. It reflects trust in an imaginary force rather than in the true God. There is no reason to believe that God has changed his view.

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There is a much more sinister side to gambling besides winning and losing. “Those who are determined to be rich fall into temptation and a snare and many senseless and hurtful desires, which plunge men into destruction and ruin,” says God’s Word. (1 Timothy 6:9

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A snare is designed to entangle a victim. Countless numbers of people, determined to wager only a small amount of money or to try their hand at gambling just a few times, have become entangled and unable to escape gambling addiction. It has destroyed careers, hurt loved ones, and ruined families.

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“Quit being fashioned after this system of things, but be transformed by making your mind over, that you may prove to yourselves the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:2) God’s will, not popular sentiment, should guide a Christian’s life. As “the happy God,” Jehovah wants us to enjoy life, free of the bitter fruitage that results from the snare that gambling is.—1 Timothy 1:11.

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Servants of God earn money by honest work

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The Excitement of Winning

Is gambling habit-forming, easily leading to addiction? Following a study of gamblers’ responses to winning and losing, Dr. Hans Breiter noted that “a monetary reward in a gambling-like experiment produces brain activation very similar to that observed in a cocaine addict receiving an infusion of cocaine.”

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2011167#h=8

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This is not true. Apparently somebody was sleeping at the latest regional convention when they specifically stated that there is nothing wrong with going to a medical professional for mental problems.

What does Chess have to do with gambling???

Bible Speaks: So far you have not shown me ANYTHING from the Bible that is wrong with taking calculated risks and gambling. By the way .. EVERYTIME YOU GET IN YOUR CAR TO GO ANYWHERE ... you

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Here is the REAL TEST!

...and all else is drivel, and irrelevancy ...

Test Question 1.) What in life is NOT a gamble?

Test Question 2.) What scripture in the Bible Prohibits taking known risks ?

NONE of the above scriptures I saw  HAVE ANYTHING WHATSOEVER to do with ANYONE willing to take a calculated risk on a voluntary basis, and in the case of, say, a Lottery, participate with others who WILLINGLY pool their money at odds of 1 in 295,000,000.

NOTHING WHATSOEVER !

zero, zip, nada, goose eggs!

If we prohibit taking known risks, among many other things, the human race will stagnate into the pit of starvation, death, and slavery, as Farmers will be PROHIBITED from doing their jobs and we will starve, there are a million ways to die,  and when enslaved, we will accept with resignation the status quo, and not risk getting free.

Oh, and by the way ... who today worships any God of Luck?

Nobody I have ever met.

I cannot even think of a name to associate with one.

Test Question 1.) What in life is NOT a gamble?

Test Question 2.) What scripture in the Bible Prohibits taking known risks ?

... all else is drivel, and irrelevancy ...

.

 

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@James Thomas Rook Jr. I don't gamble anything! I have Jehovah's direction! I have no fear of the present or the future! Yes, I have no fantasies only a Paradise Earth ? with all the blessings I want! No gamble here! 

Whether wagering online, purchasing a lottery ticket, placing a sports bet, or gaming in a casino, gamblers often overlook the source of the prize they are vying to win. Gambling differs from a legitimate transaction or purchase in that the player wants to win money that other players lose.* “For every millionaire that is created from lottery winnings,” states Canada’s Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, “there are millions of others who have lost their money!” What Bible principles can help a Christian to understand God’s feelings about this?

The last of the Ten Commandments given to Israel stated: “You must not desire your fellowman’s wife, nor his slave man nor his slave girl nor his bull nor his ass nor anything that belongs to your fellowman.” (Exodus 20:17) Desiring a fellow man’s things—his material possessions, wealth, and money—was a serious sin, listed along with desiring his wife. Centuries later, the apostle Paul repeated this command for Christians: “You must not covet.” (Romans 7:7) Might a Christian who seeks to win what another person loses be guilty of covetousness?

“Whether they [most gamblers] admit it or not,” writes columnist J. Phillip Vogel, “before the action gets going they secretly dream of turning whatever stake they have—even if it’s only a few dollars—into a windfall.” Such gamblers dream of making it big or striking it rich in one easy stroke. This obviously is contrary to the Bible’s counsel that a Christian should “do hard work, doing with his hands what is good work, that he may have something to distribute to someone in need.” (Ephesians 4:28) And the apostle Paul specifically stated: “If anyone does not want to work, neither let him eat.” He added: “They should eat food they themselves earn.” (2 Thessalonians 3:10, 12) But might gambling be considered legitimate work?

Although gambling can be an intense game, any money awarded has been won, not earned or obtained as a return for work done or services rendered. In gambling, money is wagered against the odds, with the outcome highly dependent on chance, and it is based on the hope that sooner or later things will turn out well. In short, a gambler seeks to get something for nothing. True Christians, on the other hand, are admonished to earn money by honest work. “With a man there is nothing better than that he should eat and indeed drink and cause his soul to see good because of his hard work,” wrote wise King Solomon. Then he added: “This is from the hand of the true God.” (Ecclesiastes 2:24) Yes, servants of God do not build their hope on fantasy or search for shortcuts but look to God for happiness and blessings.

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Many  games  are  okay....   Children  playing  the  whole  day  alot  different  games,  togehter  and  alone  -  they  need  games  for  their  growing  up  well :x  CHESS  belongs  to  the  good  games,  we  have  so  many  good  games  for  families  with  kiddies.  In  the  past,  we  played  every  week  any  games  with  my  parents,  I  won't  missing  that  time  together !   Today  its  nearly  over,  playing  together  in  families,  so  sorry :(

Kiddies  SO  love  "role-playings"...   deepened  into  other  persons  -  also  Bible  persons !  What  a  wonderful  game :)   TODAY,  whole  families  behind  their  comp. - games  etc. !   We  all  have  a  conscience  and  can  decide  which  game  is  okay,   OR  NOT ??    Jesus  also  drank  wine  on  earth  and  was  funny  to  the  right  time....    A  VERY  GOOD  PATTERN  FOR  US  ALL ! :D    THANK  YOU  JEHOVAH,  YOUR  BELOVED  SON  SHOWED  US  SO  MANY  NICE  THINGS  WE  CAN  DO....   WHAT  A  JOY :x

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1 hour ago, James Thomas Rook Jr. said:

Here is the REAL TEST!

...and all else is drivel, and irrelevancy ...

Test Question 1.) What in life is NOT a gamble?

Test Question 2.) What scripture in the Bible Prohibits taking known risks ?

NONE of the above scriptures I saw  HAVE ANYTHING WHATSOEVER to do with ANYONE willing to take a calculated risk on a voluntary basis, and in the case of, say, a Lottery, participate with others who WILLINGLY pool their money at odds of 1 in 295,000,000.

Bible Speaks:

So far you have not shown me ANYTHING from the Bible that is wrong with taking calculated risks and gambling.

By the way .. EVERYTIME YOU GET IN YOUR CAR TO GO ANYWHERE ... you are gambling your life, health, and fortune. ... and the lives of those riding with you.

EVERYTHING in life is a gamble ... Oh, and by the way, the Society has perhaps a HALF BILLION dollars in Stock Market Investments and invested trust funds ... and have a whole DEPARTMENT to TRY and manage those ...(oh, what's the word I am lookng for ... oh yeah! ...) GAMBLE.

And in a Lottery, EVERY participant is there by his OWN FREE will .... in any enterprise entered upon with free will, there are no losers ... only those who did not win the pool.

And yes, YOU will be disfellowshipped for buying a one dollar Lottery ticket ... while the Society gambles with millions of dollars of OUR contributions... EVERY ... DAY!

What's wrong with THAT picture?

 

 

 

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19 hours ago, Bible Speaks said:

Gambling can be on anything. I've seen gambling even on animals running or fighting each other, sadly! 

It's true. I remember when some Bethelites began betting on when certain non-anointed brothers at Bethel would start partaking of the emblems publicly before the older members of the Governing Body started dying off. Seriously!!

And @Bible Speaks is also right about "chess." When I first wanted to play chess with some of the guys who set up a table around NYC parks, I realized that this was intended to be a money-making scheme for those with the tables. Even a side-bet is possible with some of them.

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When I was younger, I used to jump out of "perfectly good airplanes" ... calculating the value of what I would learn to be FAR greater than the risks involved .... and as I sat in the doorway of the aircraft, with my feet hanging out, and the ground two miles below me, I would look at the veins on the back of my left hand holding onto the door frame, and think "If I am wrong ... that hand, and the rest of me, will be dead in about three minutes."

On my first jump, I crushed my left ankle when landing, and it took five years to stop hurting ...so I could jump again.

I look back on such gambles as having made me a better person.

I could have gotten killed, but voluntarily leaving that doorway ... I could NOT LOSE.

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"In short, a gambler seeks to get something for nothing. " This is patently an untrue statement. You are offering up something. It may be $1 but that is something. Just because the reward is outrageous, does not make the initial investment of no consequence. If a farmer plants one kernel of corn and gets 15 ears if corn that is a good investment. However, based upon the weather it could also be considered a gamble. Depends upon which farmer you talk to about it. 

Also, what about those times around the holiday season when grocery stores are offering turkeys or hams and such. All you have to do is put your name in a bucket. No purchase necessary at all. Is that gambling? (might be celebrating the holidays, but that is another question) 

No, gambling is not forbidden per see in the scriptures. You have to really reason on the scriptures to get to that point and even then you have to be a contortionist to get the the point where gambling is forbidden. 

Shepherd the Flock of God page 69

32. If a business gives out prizes or prize money to winners of a contest or to potential customers for advertising, accepting the gilt is an individuals personal decision to make. However, a person needs to be careful that accepting such a prize not does stir up greed.
(Rom. 14:21; 1 Cor. 10:31-33; g7S 7/8 p. 28; w73 p. 127) The elders do well not to involve themselves in what individuals do with regard to petty gambling solely for entertainment. They may need to give counsel if this becomes a cause of stumbling for others or affects the spirituality of the individual or the congregation.-w02 11/1 p. 31.

So, how do you define petty gambling? Is it the size of the wager or the size of the prize? Also, something to think about is how do you define being greedy? If a person donates most of the winnings to charitable causes perhaps even the Watchtower Society can you say the person is greedy? 

At any rate, all accusations of wrongdoing should be based firmly on scripture and not convoluted reasoning. 

Cheers,

 

 

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