March 16, Evening

C. H. Spurgeon · Modern retelling

"Keep back Thy servant also from presumptuous sins." — Psalm 19:13 · KJV

Such was the prayer of the man after God's own heart. Did holy David need to pray this? How needful, then, must such a prayer be for us babes in grace! It is as if he said, "Keep me back, or I shall rush headlong over the precipice of sin." Our evil nature, like an ill-tempered horse, is apt to run away; may the grace of God put the bridle on it and hold it in, that it rush not into mischief. What might not the best of us do, were it not for the checks the Lord sets upon us, both in providence and in grace! The psalmist's prayer is directed against the worst form of sin — that which is done with deliberation and willfulness. Even the holiest need to be "kept back" from the vilest transgressions. It is a solemn thing to find the apostle Paul warning saints against the most loathsome sins: "Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry." What — do saints need warning against such sins as these? Yes, they do. The whitest robes, unless their purity is preserved by divine grace, will be stained with the darkest spots. Experienced Christian, do not boast in your experience; you will trip yet, if you look away from Him who is able to keep you from falling. You whose love is fervent, whose faith is constant, whose hopes are bright, do not say, "We shall never sin," but rather cry, "Lead us not into temptation." There is enough tinder in the heart of the best of men to light a fire that would burn to the lowest hell, unless God should quench the sparks as they fall. Who would have dreamed that righteous Lot could be found drunken and committing uncleanness? Hazael said, "Is thy servant a dog, that he should do this thing?" and we are very apt to use the same self-righteous question. May infinite wisdom cure us of the madness of self-confidence.