The Godless Gamble

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Elijah19

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Recently, I came across a very interesting concept that might help some people if they are having trouble with the Faith. Whether they are doubting the Faith in Christ they already have, or whether they have no Faith in Christ to begin with and would like a non-debatable reason to believe, the following is one such idea that really hits it home.

Long ago, during the 1600's, a French mathematician, scientist and philosopher contended that reason alone could not conclusively prove that God and immortality existed for sure either way. Working with this idea as his pre-supposed given, he made a wager with his fellow thinkers, and even proposed the wager to his generation as a Gamble/Challenge. The Gamble went like this:

"Are you willing to roll the dice on where you will spend eternity?" the Scientist, named Blaise Pascal said. "Here is how we will play this game. In the game of life, you have two choices and can pick only one =

Choice A.) Accept God: If you win, you win everything on death and gain significant meaning in life. If you lose, you lose nothing in life or death.

Choice B.) Reject God: If you win, you win nothing at death and garner no meaning in life. If you lose, you lose everything, having no meaning in life and being condemned eternally at death.

"There are three kinds of people at the end of the day," reasoned Pascal. "Those who have sought and found God are reasonable and happy. Those who are seeking God but have not found him are reasonable and unhappy. Lastly, those who neither seek nor find God are both unreasonable and unhappy. Now is the time to chose which of these people you are."

Can't really argue that logic...
 
Actually you can. The logic is 'i will accept God... just in case' as oppose to realizing a need for God and choosing a path that follows and trusts Him. Choosing God because it's a safer bet isn't truly accepting God, it's accepting an idea that doesn't change your heart.
 
The gamble represents a trite scare tactic that is kind of a nasty way to win someone over to the faith. It's a convoluted intellectual's way of using the prospect of eternal damnation as reason enough to devote one's self to Christ, and that is not what coming to Him in faith is about.
 
It's a typical example of very smart human thinking which makes clear that after all without Gods wisdom, we are still stupid.:rolleyes:
 
Both true, Ugly and Siberian Khatru. But it makes a very good point. If it can get someone to question, the idea may lead the listener to true-seeking rather than just stagnation. Sometimes before a person can come to Jesus, they need to get a little scared. Nothing wrong with using a little "fire and brimstone" preaching to get the job done. Practically every Godly Biblical character used the tactic. Scare tactics are not off limits to rattle the cage so that hope can be shown as the only way.
 
A lot of non-believers have heard this. I didn't call it trite to insult anyone, but rather because it really is a recycled argument that people are not very inclined to consider from what I've witnessed (granted, some of that has to do with stubbornness).

I am, however, glad to see that you (and Blaise, God rest his soul) have a mind and a heart for God. Apologetics is necessary, and great minds - past and present - have given us a lot to consider.
 
I always loved that idea: well if you're right and God doesn't exist then I don't lose anything by believing in Him. If you're wrong and you don't accept Him then you don't get to be with Him.
 
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