There’s a crack in my driveway. It’s become a bit of a problem because it is causing portions of the driveway to heave, buckle, crumble, and become very uneven. It hasn’t always been this way. In fact, it all started, I’m sure, with a very small crack in the concrete. In fact, in the beginning, I didn’t even notice it. Over time, the small crack became a big one. And from one came many more. During the winter water settles in, freezes, thaws, freezes again and wreaks all manner of havoc. Sin is that way.

Small things left unattended become big problems.

Big things left unattended become catastrophic.

I was saddened to read recently of a large, well-known church in the Midwest that has been fractured by charges of improper relationships by the now-retired founding pastor. He is well-known as a megachurch pastor and best-selling author. The lead pastor and entire elder board resigned because they failed to properly handle the crisis from the very beginning.

How do these kinds of things happen to churches? It starts with a small crack, just like the one in my driveway. When we compromise in any area, fissures are created. It doesn’t take much for them to grow over time. You don’t notice them at first. But in time, due to inattention, they grow and grow until a fracture occurs. What seemed so small and insignificant can ultimately do great damage and become catastrophic. Small things become big things, and big things left unattended become catastrophic.

We must be wary. We must look to ourselves. We must be diligent—biblically, doctrinally, spiritually, relationally—to make sure we are circumspect in our lives and in our church. It is easy to make little concessions here and there, let down our guard, to allow small cracks to form. When we become proud and powerful we excuse the small cracks of sin in our lives as insignificant. Small cracks become big ones. I found that out with my driveway.

We have seen in Psalm 118,

    The stone which the builders rejected
    Has become the chief corner stone.
    This is the Lord’s doing;
    It is marvelous in our eyes.

Jesus Christ is the ultimate fulfillment of these words. He was rejected, yes, but His Father made Him the Cornerstone of the Church. The enemy sought to crumble that Stone, but God turned it around on him. What appeared to be a certain defeat for Jesus became His certain victory. This is the Lord’s doing. Christ became the Rock of our Salvation, the solid Rock that can never be moved. He is the anchor of our faith, our conduct, our hope and our future.

Therefore, we are to plant our lives directly on the firm foundation of the sinless Christ. When we consistently do so and always look to Him as the standard of our lives, we will not be crushed, broken, fractured and scattered. We must, however, remember the following:

    • Don’t leave little things unattended. Big and small sins can cause erosion.

    • Erosion of sin in our lives doesn't just affect us but can infect others as well.

    • Ask God to search your heart for signs of erosion, quickly deal with them, and seek forgiveness.

The crack in my driveway can be repaired. But the whole thing will probably have to be replaced. There are great costs and lasting damage that are extremely difficult to repair when we leave little sins unattended. Small things left unattended become big problems. Big things left unattended become catastrophic. Learn from the crack in my driveway.