All bets are off

National | The church must speak up about gambling, rather than betting that the problem will just go away | R. Albert Mohler

The nationwide explosion of legal gambling may well be the most underrated dimension of America's moral crisis. With the expansion of state lotteries, casino gambling, and new technologies, the gambling industry is poised to grow even further in the next decade.

The Bible is clear on this issue. The entire enterprise of gambling is opposed to the moral worldview revealed in God's Word. The basic impulse behind gambling is greed-a basic sin that is the father of many other evils. Scripture repeatedly addresses greed, covetousness, and avarice as a sin against God, and often with a graphic warning of the destruction that is greed's result. The burning desire for earthly riches leads to frustration and spiritual death.