GAMBLING – You LOSE Every Time

Ephesians 4: 14 – That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;

The word used for ‘sleight’ means "game or gambling, hence entrapping BY DECEIT." God is saying that He does not want His children to be tossed to and fro, and blown about by all of men’s doctrines.

You have heard it said that lotteries and riverboat gambling and casinos all have some benefit – especially to senior citizens. IT IS A LIE FROM HELL! The acceptance of homosexuals into our society and the acceptance of gambling are two (2) of three (3) ways that will bring a country to its knees. All three combined and God will allow the enemy to destroy any country, state or organization that exists. REMEMBER, GOD DOES NOT AND CANNOT DESTROY anything. Only the adversary can steal, kill, and destroy -- that is his ministry. First, let us see what God’s Word says in reference to Himself in I John.

I John 1: 5 – This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

If this is true, then how can God destroy or kill people?! He cannot. You either believe the Word of God or you do not. Make up your mind now. If you want to believe what religions teach or some idiotic television preacher, then CLOSE OUT THIS WEB SITE in the name of Jesus Christ. Go watch TV or go and listen to some idiot who attempts to teach God’s Word but teaches worldly doctrine for his own glory. God’s Word says that he or she will get what they have coming to them. Now, do I sound religious? Religion sickens people and turns them away from the Bible and it is repulsive to God as He states in Isaiah.

Isaiah 1: 13, 14, 15 – Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with [I CANNOT TOLERATE]; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting. Your new moon and your appointed feasts my soul hateth: they are trouble unto me; I am weary to bear them. And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood.

THAT IS WHAT GOD THINKS ABOUT RELIGION.

John 10: 10 – The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Who is the thief? It is your personal adversary and mine. He knows your old man like the back of your hand. He knows your strengths and weaknesses. But what does God’s Word say in reference to His strength and the strength of CHRIST IN YOU if you study and renew your mind?

I John 4: 4 – Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

Everything that God wants you to be involved in will result in a WIN/WIN outcome. When you are in a business transaction with anyone, BOTH parties should be satisfied or blessed. That is the way the true God and Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ does things. I was taught to do a job right or not at all. Surely God Almighty can do something so great that we cannot even comprehend it, only apprehend it.

I understand that the lure of gambling can appear harmless to many people. But the problem is this: There is one who LOSES and one who WINS. Let me go back to our win/win example before we proceed any farther. Here is a simple scenario that we can all relate to:

You are selling a car and you, the seller, and the buyer, reach an equitable, fair agreement as to the selling price. The buyer IS BLESSED with the price of the car AND you ARE CONTENT AND BLESSED with the money you received to get rid of the car. This is a simple WIN/WIN situation. That is how God wants every business transaction or any transaction at all to conclude.

I am not going to try and quote you a lot of Scripture about a subject that is so obviously wrong. I am going to give you real life examples of what can happen to you if you are enticed by gambling.

My earthly father liked to gamble on occasion. You see, the adversary makes it appear like a gambler is a big deal, while the enemy laughs to himself as he makes a fool out of a person. Remember, he can only steal, kill, and destroy. My dad went to Las Vegas one time and was playing a certain type of card game. Of course, the owners of these casinos have beautiful women coming around offering drinks for free and they will offer many perks to a big time gambler. Why? BECAUSE THEY WANT YOUR MONEY. Why do you choose to give it to them? God will tell you why.

Galatians 5: 22, 23 -- But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

The key word I want to stress in the above verse is the word ‘temperance’. The Lexicon defines this as ‘self-control’. You will only manifest the fruit of the Spirit by operating the nine manifestations of the Spirit or at least some of them. You gamble because you lack self-control. It is that simple.

What happened to my earthly father? HE LOST HIS HOUSE IN TWENTY (20) minutes. Somehow and only by the grace of God, he was able to win back what he originally lost. I never forgot what he told me. How could I?

In twenty (20) minutes, in Atlantic City, I once lost $90.00. It was the money I needed to get my motorcycle out of the shop. I felt sick. I had to borrow the money to get my motorcycle.

I watch older people stand in line like puppets waiting to spend their social security money on lottery tickets. It is really a sorry state of affairs when our legislators accept and promote gambling. Did you ever here of an animal called a ‘lemming’? Every so often, they will gather at a cliff near the sea and jump off and commit suicide. That is what people do when they gamble.

I knew an obsessive gambler who destroyed his life completely as a result of his habit. He became withdrawn, antisocial, and began to overeat until he became obese and dropped dead at 59 years old. This person was a relative of mine and he had a good heart – deep down he was suffering tremendously. He could not really enjoy any sports unless he bet on the game. Gambling is a sickening and nauseating trick of Satan himself.

II Corinthians 11: 14 – And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

In the Old Testament, you will find many references to a business transaction, sale, or agreement. The type of figure of speech used in olden times is the term "striking of hands". This is like our handshake. Almost all agreements were made with the conclusion being the striking of hands. It was not like today where you need to sign a lot of papers and get an attorney to make sure you are not going to get taken or even sued. Some attorneys are only out to get money – the more the better. Not all of them. I had an attorney once meet me in a parking lot to represent me in a trivial matter – he never met me before, BUT HE TOOK A RETAINER OF $500.00 FROM ME. Prior to this, he would not return my calls, shut off his FAX machine so he could not receive my letter canceling his services, AND THEN CHARGED ME $450.00 to spend about 45 minutes with me. We went to a mall to get a small snack – I PAYED -- he was CHARGING ME FOR THAT TIME!!!!!!! Can you imagine? As a final bill, he charged me 25 cents for each copy and FAX related to my situation!!!!!!! It is almost unbelievable, is it not? I would not want to be that person. What a man sows is what he reaps and there is no escape.

Colossians 3: 25 – But he that doeth wrong shall receive [lambano -- in full] for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.

Psalms 70: 2 – Let them be ashamed and confounded that seek after my soul: let them be turned backward, and put to confusion, that desire my hurt.

And yet this lawyer’s brother is the most honest, effective, and merciful person you may want to meet. You see, I thought I was hiring the brother, but he was out of town. The reason I brought up legal entanglements is because, if you are a gambler, you may need the services of a good honest reputable lawyer to help you out of the mess you got yourself into. It may not be easy to find one. And then you must pay attorney’s fees on top of the money you already owe to the gambling casino, or worse yet, to a loan shark.

Gambling is a clever trick of the god of this world. I warn you from my heart – do not fall for it. It is designed to do only one thing – destroy your life and defeat you on every hand. Only the Word of God rightly divided AND APPLIED defeats the adversary – do not ever forget that.

I John 4: 4 -- Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, that he that is in the world.

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