The altars of our culture’s excess

“Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” This chilling line from the book of Judges closes out 21 chapters and four centuries of Israel’s rebellion and debauchery against their persistent, loving God. The people favored a self-defined, self-serving “morality” over the morality of God outlined in his law.

Idealistically, everyone might do what is right in accordance with governing law, or what is right for the welfare of the community, or what is right in the eyes of God. “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” is far and away the most destructive option, and yet it is the option our society has collectively moved toward over the last several generations. The Las Vegas-ification of America is fully underway.

Consider three vices at the forefront of the cultural conversation: gambling, marijuana, and pornography. Each of these has transitioned from publicly shamed, to publicly tolerated, to publicly embraced over the last century.

A key libertarian concept–do whatever you desire as long as it doesn’t harm others–is reigning in American politics today. Many accept the normalization of vices in the name of individual freedom, be it freedom from government overreach or religious influence. 

For those indulging in the vices, however, freedom is just an illusion. Submitting to the influence of a sportsbook, psychoactive substance, or an online prostitute is its own kind of bondage, and it comes at a cost. And despite popular belief, the consequences of these vices do hurt more people than just the participants.

The Casino in Your Pocket

We are not far removed from a day when legal gambling was reserved for casinos and race tracks that most Americans had to travel a decent distance to reach. Now the casino is in our pocket and can be accessed by almost anyone, anywhere, anytime. Not that gambling needs significant promotion for people to be intrigued by it, but it is nearly impossible to watch a sporting event or listen to a sports podcast without being pounded over the head with sportsbook ads.

Young men are most affected by the surge in online betting. In April, Siena Research reported that 52 percent of men aged 18-49 have an active account with an online sportsbook like DraftKings or FanDuel. Nearly two-thirds of professed gamblers have bet at least $100 in a day before.

22 percent of poll respondents stated that they know someone with an online sports betting “problem”–a significant increase from 15 percent in 2025. Large majorities expressed concern about the normalization of online bets, the risk to younger adults, and the potential to corrupt organized sports. 

Yet, 50 percent believe online gambling should be legalized in every state. The irony, of course, is that there is an overlap between those participating in the betting and those expressing concern about one or more of the aforementioned issues.

Online gambling is not specific to sports. Through sites like Polymarket and Kalshi, you can bet on just about anything–you can even try to get rich on the destruction of the world! While, in technical terms, prediction markets may not be considered gambling, it certainly turns investing into a game. 

As I type this article, I can “invest” my money on Polymarket by predicting which date the government will confirm alien life to the public (of course, if they never do confirm, the house wins). I can also predict how many posts Elon Musk will make on X over an 11-day period, make an educated guess on when the internet will return to Iran, or predict if there will be more tech industry layoffs in 2026 than in 2025.

Each of these, to varying degrees, is a real-life event that can be manipulated to produce specific results and enrich a particular person or side. 

Additionally, the prediction market gets to define the terms. Kalshi users are still waiting on a collective $54 million to be paid out after the death of Iranian Ayatollah Khamenei. Bettors rightly predicted the Ayatollah would be removed from power by a specific date, but wagers cannot be made on human death, and Kalshi reportedly included a “death carveout” in their rules.

Needless to say, online gambling gets very messy. Ethical dilemmas, fraud, insider dealing, and predatory tactics abound in both sportsbooks and prediction markets. In states that have legalized online gambling, debt collection and bankruptcy have increased, according to a 2025 UCLA study.

Drugs and Lust

When a physical casino comes to town, it often brings a degenerating effect with it. If America is becoming a nationwide digital casino, it is not unreasonable to expect it to be accompanied by the same degenerative practices. The wheels are already in motion.

Consider the state of marijuana normalization: The National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics reports over 61 million Americans used marijuana in 2024, one-quarter of high school seniors used it in 2025, and overall usage jumped by 62.5 percent between 2015 and 2024. 

Marijuana usage is linked to several adverse effects, including declining cognitive function, increased depression, and increased traffic fatalities.

40 states now permit legal access to the drug, which has become a favored choice among Americans over tobacco products. Each year, Americans pay billions in cannabis taxes–money state governments collect in an effort to justify the affirmation of harmful substance use.

The cannabis tax is not the only form of “sin” tax on the table, though. James Fishback, a Florida gubernatorial candidate, garnered attention recently after outlining his plan for a 50 percent “sin” tax on OnlyFans “creators.” OnlyFans is a platform primarily used for what could appropriately be termed online prostitution–a subscription model that has emerged as another increasingly popular form of consumption in American culture.

The site is one of several avenues by which the pornography industry has continued to expand and adapt. The subscription method and the surge in AI-generated content are producing a tragically false sense of relational quality and individualized experiences among users.

The multi-billion-dollar industry is responsible for sexual abuse, trafficking, and other countless evils. It destroys marriages, careers, churches, and the innocence of children. There is not one aspect of the industry’s production or consumption that could even remotely be seen as good in the eyes of God. 

Yet, just 46 percent of the population sees pornography as harmful, according to Covenant Eyes, an accountability software. 78 percent of men and 44 percent of women view pornography.

With fewer Americans having sex overall, the pornography industry is superceding “hook-up” culture and premarital sex. One evil traded for another. 

This trade is a symptom of a larger trend that has shaped the 21st century: instant gratification. Everything is simpler to access. We do not mind getting worse versions of everything (fast food, movies, relationships, etc.), as long as we get them simpler and faster.

A Fruitful Response

Instant gratification is central to understanding the popularity of these vices. It is also antithetical to the Christian life that demands patience, endurance, and sacrifice.

For the Christ-follower who recognizes the cascade of morality in our society but struggles with our role and response, consider the biblical concept of stewardship. Biblical stewardship teaches that God is the owner of all things, but for our brief time on earth, each of us is entrusted with some things (time, talent, treasure) to steward (or use) for the glory of God.

• Financial stewardship: Am I using the money I have been entrusted with in a wise and discerning way? Where do sportsbooks and prediction markets fit on the stewardship scale?
• Bodily stewardship: How am I caring for the body God gifted me? How do vices like drugs and pornography affect my body?
• Clock stewardship: Am I using my time in a way that honors God? Rather than designating time for my vice, can I designate time for pursuing the Lord?

What about those who are uninterested in walking with obedience?

“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil” (Isaiah 5:20). Isaiah prophesied in a day of extreme drunkenness and ignorance about the morality of God. His warning effectively summarizes the practical outcome of a self-governing people who have lost their zeal for God: they will confuse good and evil.

Having awareness of this sad reality is important, but what can we do about it? How do I rescue the loved one who is trapped by one of these vices? Consider Jude 22-23:  ²² And have mercy on those who doubt; ²³ save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh. 

The brother of Jesus provides an interesting formula for engaging those who are engaging in the things of the world.

• “Have mercy on those who doubt.” First, Jude tells us to show mercy to those who doubt since we have been shown great mercy from God through Christ’s gospel work. The doubter needs encouragement, not condemnation. If their doubt is leading them to worldly pursuits, the need for firm redirection increases.
• “Save others by snatching them out of the fire.” Second, he tells us that some need to be urgently snatched out of the fire before they commit themselves to destruction. Jude may have in view the professing believer who is chasing after greed, lust, or false gospels.
• “To others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.” Cautious not to lose our footing in our efforts to protect those we care about from getting burned, Jude shares that some require extreme care. We must be careful not to fall into the same captivity in our efforts to drag them away from it. Reaching the lost does not demand living like the lost.

Will we ever return to a day when these vices were taboo?

Some politicians and commentators on both sides of the aisle are striving for that, but very few have made the degrading morality of the country their primary focus. Individual liberty is a founding principle of our nation. Perhaps these vices were not the liberties our founders had in mind. How can we play a role in turning the tide?

• Learn and participate in how churches are helping people at the ground level. Many churches have recovery ministries focused on finding freedom from addictions and vices. If you are in need of a recovery ministry, Re:generation is a Christ-centered option that operates in hundreds of churches across the country–there may be one near you!
• Cry out to God (Luke 18:7). Pray for our leaders and the hearts of our people. Pray that God would revive a zeal for righteousness in our culture. Pray that greed, lust, and instant gratification would lose their grip on our nation.

At the end of the day, there is a lot of work to be done, and the trajectory is grim. Discouraging as the outlook might be, we each have an individual responsibility to guard ourselves, pray fervently, and disciple others, beginning with our families, to bring honor to the Lord.