Isn’t that the secret of many a fall among the children of God? Isn’t it the small, unnoticed things that catch us unprepared and cause our downfall? We can rarely be accused of the great, glaring sins of the world around us, sins that are “quite evident” and “going before them to judgment” (1 Tim 5:24). But decline usually begins with small things—with habits we allow ourselves, with questionable things we pursue, whether in our profession, private life, school, factory, store, or on the farm. In these small beginnings often lies the danger. Here is where a downward Christian course usually starts.

“Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards,” is the exhortation in Song of Solomon 2:15—those cunning little creatures that cause damage unnoticed. “See how great a forest a little fire kindles!” says the Apostle James, emphasizing his warning with the exclamation “See!” For you can be sure, dear Christian reader, the danger is very real. We must constantly be on guard against hidden dangers and unseen snares.

I know of a case where a shameless path, requiring exclusion from the Lord’s table, began with the desire to “just watch a video.” It was the spark that “set the course of nature on fire.” Another began because he wanted to “have a little drink” now and then. If in the political world, “Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty” [Footnote 1], how much more in spiritual matters, where Satan’s traps are countless. We must always be on guard because the flesh in us so easily responds to temptations. And prayer must be paired with vigilance, for has not our faithful Leader warned us: “Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation”?

The Danger of False Security

“Few accidents have occurred,” says the traveler, “because they were constantly anticipated.” And far fewer cases would heavenly travelers have to experience if these cases were more feared and taken more seriously. “The danger lies in people becoming careless in a feeling of complete safety.” Yes, and when believers lull themselves into a false sense of security—perhaps caused by long experience, their knowledge of Scripture, past triumphs over temptations, natural willpower, freedom from fleshly desires, etc., all contributing to a false sense of security—then self-judgment, constant prayer, and vigilance are no longer seen as necessary; and then comes the derailment, the fall!

A Call to Watchfulness

Oh, brothers and sisters, should we lull ourselves to sleep because of the everlasting love of our Shepherd and the almighty hand of the Father? Should we therefore no longer pay attention to our walk, our habits, our words, the company we keep, or the places we visit? Nothing can separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Let us thank God for that! Yet that is no guarantee that I will not fall if I slacken in vigilance against every approach of worldliness or sin.

Yes, the “great iron bridge” of the eternal security of every true believer stands. But let us pay attention to the “small cables” and be on guard against the inconspicuous, unexpected “loose rails.” Here we are most vulnerable to the shipwreck of faith, going off course, and ending up broken and destroyed in some ravine or swamp by the wayside.

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Pet 5:8). And remember, he is even more dangerous when he stealthily comes as an “angel of light.”