Broken Windows Theory and Sin

“The theory states that maintaining and monitoring urban environments to prevent small crimes such as vandalism, public drinking and toll-jumping helps to create an atmosphere of order and lawfulness, thereby preventing more serious crimes from happening.”

It is well recognized among law enforcement officials that when small crime is ignored it leads to large crime. That goes against the idea that some have which is to ignore the small crime and focus on big crime.

You see similar attitudes about sin… ignore the small sin (white lies, immodesty, selfishness, bitterness, jealousy) and come down hard on big sins (Homosexuality, murder, adultery, theft). Take for example sexual impurity. God wants his people to be sexually pure… no sexual intercourse except for between a man and a woman who have exchanged marriage vows. The small things that could lead to the big thing include; immodesty (the revealing of too much skin or clothes that are too tight revealing too much anatomy), physical contact (kissing, sitting in laps, touching private places) and inappropriate speech (of a sexual nature). In the case of sexual impurity if we control the small things usually the big thing will be controlled too but if we don’t then pretty soon God’s laws on sexual intercourse are violated and you find people becoming living together sexually or having multiple sexual partners or exploring sex homosexually.

A rock thrown through a window can lead to home invasion, theft and murder and small sin can lead to huge sin. Focus on the small sin and protect yourself from things that you never could have imagined yourself doing.