www.cg: Is God a Gambler?

IS GOD A GAMBLER?

By Richard Burkard

It was in many ways a picture-perfect Saturday evening. After our church service, several members of our congregation gathered for a cookout and dinner at a member's beautiful country home. The discussion went in several directions, from jobs to favorite Feast sites. But the most surprising for me came around sunset, when a retired gentleman began talking about his favorite hobby: playing blackjack in casinos.

"You have to know how to count the cards," he told us - explaining he sometimes travels to casinos in nearby states and wins hundreds of dollars. After attending "Church of God" groups for close to 20 years, I thought I'd heard about everything. But this was indeed a first - a longtime member openly admitting to "recreational" gambling trips. The rest of us sat at the kitchen table and listened to his tales and tips, but none of us openly challenged the morality of what he did. Still mindful of the "non-judgmental" approach the updated Worldwide Church of God taught, and not wanting to be an ugly guest, I remained silent.

In the Worldwide Church of God, the issue of gambling seems to have turned upside down in the last 15 years or so. The old thinking was: members should NOT gamble - but God risked His entire plan of salvation by sending Jesus to earth. "Doesn't God know everything? The answer is NO.... God does not choose to know, in advance, what you or I will be thinking, reasoning, deciding, tomorrow or in the future." (Incredible Human Potential, 1978, p. 59) The logical extension is that God the Father could not know what Jesus would decide to do on earth.

The modern WCG thinking seems to be quite the opposite. Now members can gamble if they choose - but God was NOT a gambler, and knew Jesus would succeed with His mission on earth. Yet as recently as 1995, months after "the changes" in Church doctrine, the minister at a Caribbean Feast of Tabernacles site left no doubt visitors should avoid the casinos nearby.

Confusing? For those who've taken time to think it through, it probably is. It certainly left me that way. I was so steeped in the "anti-gambling" theology of the old WCG that when my state legalized lotteries, I spent months buying gasoline only at convenience stores that did not sell lottery tickets. My personal "cave-in" came when other church members were in my car with a tank almost on empty, at a store I chose in semi-desperation which had a lottery stand hidden inside.

Gambling is an issue that divides religious denominations. Some embrace gambling so much that they make money hosting regular bingo games in their church buildings. Others oppose it on grounds that it steals money from low-income families who need it most, in effect selling them a pipedream. When a state Southern Baptist official was invited to speak at a WCG Feast site in 1999, he wasn't afraid to bring up an upcoming referendum on whether the state should keep legalized video poker. (He was against it.)

But what does the Bible really say about the topic - if anything? At a TV station where I do freelance work, the "viewer line" for comments has taped people quoting Bible verses both for and against gambling. It takes some digging into the Scriptures to find actual examples of the practice. The first one occurs in the book of Judges:

"Let me tell you a riddle," Samson tells a group of 30 men at his wedding -- men some commentaries consider more bodyguards than groomsmen. "If you can give me the answer within the seven days of the feast, I will give you 30 linen garments and 30 sets of clothes. If you can't tell me the answer, you must give me 30 linen garments and 30 sets of clothes." (Judg. 14:12-13)

Some might call this a "friendly wager" - except friendship had nothing to do with it. When the 30 men pressure and threaten Samson's bride to get the answer to the riddle, Samson goes ballistic. He kills 30 seemingly innocent bystanders, "burning with anger" (v. 19). He even loses marital custody of his bride to "his best man" (v. 20, RSV).

Yet as we consider the consequences of a 30-garment bet, we should not overlook the first part of verse 19: "....the Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power." God's Spirit entered a gambler - in fact, a "sore loser" gambler who had just married outside the tribes! (v. 3) If you think God only works through holy, converted people, this would seem strange. Yet verse 4 tells us, "this was from the Lord, who was seeking an occasion to confront the Philistines...." God used Samson as a tool of vengeance - while not necessarily endorsing his attitudes or decisions.

(And here's a point to ponder: is this an example of the Holy Spirit coming to and going from humans - much as the Spirit did with Saul a bit later, in I Samuel?)

In the New Testament, soldiers crucified Jesus - then, "they divided up his clothes by casting lots." (Mt. 27:35) The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary states the group was "probably gambling with dice" - but Christians are supposed to imitate the One on the cross, not really the people around Him at the crucifixion.

A passage in I Peter moves us beyond anecdotal evidence, and into a spiritual dimension. Christ is called "....a lamb without blemish or defect. He was chosen before the creation of the world, but was revealed in these last times for your sake." (I Pet. 1:19-20) This indicates Jesus not only was "slain from the foundation of the world," (Rev. 13:8, KJV) but was set apart for that purpose even before Genesis 1:1. Clarke's Concise Bible Commentary states here: "With God knowledge is purpose...."

Even before writing these words, Peter proclaimed on a historic day of Pentecost: "Jesus of Nazareth was a man.... handed over to you by God's set purpose and foreknowledge...." (Acts 2:22-23) The Moffatt translation puts it this way: "Betrayed in the predestined course of God's deliberate purpose...." Jesus thus fulfilled a role prophesied in Old Testament passages such as Isaiah 53. Clarke's commentary notes of these verses: "This was a great moment in the history of the Church, when it accepted the Cross as God's plan for the world...."

The point of Peter's words: when it came to Jesus and our salvation, God had it all planned in advance -- and Jesus was "plan A," not the back-up plan. Revelation 13:8 may take this concept an amazing step further. Moffatt's translation describes the coming of the end-time Beast this way: "....all dwellers on earth will be his worshippers, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of Life."

What's this? Do you mean Christians were in the book of Life from the creation of the universe? Here's an issue that's caused theological debate for centuries, from the first publications of John Calvin to 21^st-century Internet message boards. The New International Version notes two significantly different wordings of this verse. The main text says: "All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast - all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world." Yet the NIV margin offers this option: "....written from the creation of the world in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain...."

So what's the Biblically right answer on the issue of predestination? Sorry, that's a bit beyond the reach of this article. The Interpreter's Bible commentary admits with this verse, the order of words is "somewhat ambiguous." But we can offer these words of hope from Isaiah 46:9-10: "....I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please."

It happened that as a nearby state prepared to vote on legalizing a lottery in 1999, Dr. Tony Evans presented a radio series on gambling. He put the issue in the form of ten questions you should ask. Without stealing outright his material, which may be available from his ministry, he suggested you consider your motivation (greed, or God's providence?), the amount of risk involved, whether or not it is addicting, and whether it will harm other people and society in general.

His series quoted many verses, including I Timothy 6:17: "Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." This really is good advice not only for wealthy people, but anyone - whether you're at a blackjack table or considering a stock investment; whether you're seeking a better job or involved in a big-money criminal operation.

We've seen God took NO chances with the plan of salvation - at least in terms of Jesus's role, and perhaps even as far as yours. Matthew 6:33 reminds us to seek that role above everything else in this life: "....Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." They might not be given to us this week; in fact, they might not even come in this lifetime - but this is a promise that extends beyond this life, into all eternity.

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