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1. Jesus Poker, Anyone?
Gambling is not one of my weak points. I never gamble on Sunday, and the rest of the week I get upset at losing 50 cents in a friendly card game. But I've been around enough card games to know that one shouldn't make sucker bets against a "pat hand." And when the stakes have risen past the penny-ante betting to spiritual "Russian roulette," somebody's gotta hit the "Whoa Button."
One of my favorite Old Testament characters was a guy they called the WATCHMAN. His job was to stand on the wall and blow the alarm horn if the enemy approached. If the people didn't respond when he blew the horn, their blood was on themselves. But if the Watchman didn't blow the horn, the blood of the people was on him.
That's why I'm blowing the horn right now. If someone is going to suffer eternal consequences, I don't want any of their blood on me. I don't have to blow the horn until anyone believes; I just have to blow it. Then their blood is on themselves.
In betting terms, a sucker bet is one that can never win, while a pat hand is one that can never lose. It's like Superman hitting a pile of jelly at warp speed. Silly as it may seem, people make this kind of bet all day long. Alfred E. Neuman would have said it like this: I think there's no God so why should I worry?
Look at it this way: if the Christians are wrong and there is no God, I won't be any worse off than the atheists. But I will have lived my life experiencing more joy, fulfillment, and peace. I come out ahead by anyone's standards.
But if the Christians are right (and I'm betting they are) I look forward to joyous eternal life while others can only pray for a quick merciful death that will not soon be forthcoming, since eternal also means you can't die. Tomorrow, next month, and a thousand years from now will be just as painful as today for those folks. Looks like I'm way ahead in this situation as well.
So in terms of pure outcomes, the atheist has everything to lose and nothing to gain, while I have everything to gain and nothing to lose.
That's a bet I'll take any day, and twice on Sunday.
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