“Catch us the foxes, The little foxes that spoil the vines” (Song of Solomon 2:15)  

The little foxes that spoil the vines are little sins, which weigh down the conscience. A great sin can’t destroy a Christian, but little sins can make him so miserable, he loses his sense of “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Romans 14:17). If little sins are left unrepented, your conscience can eventually be seared as with a hot iron (1 Timothy 4:2), and you lose your sensitivity to sin. In this state, you can sin with abandon, and grieve the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 4:30). When you lose the input from these two God-given helpers, you can think, feel and act according to your Old Man, and do things you once thought unthinkable 

 In this state, you’re almost as blind as a sinner, who, “in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness” (Ephesians 4:17-19). 

Christ won’t walk with you unless you repent of every known sin. He says, “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father's commandments and abide in His love” (John 15:10). Some Christians seldom enjoy their Savior's presence. What! You’re the spouse of Christ, and you’re content to dwell apart from Him? Surely, you’ve fallen into a sad state, for the chaste spouse of Christ mourns like a dove for her mate, when he’s left her. 

 This warning was written to saints: “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, "The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously"? (James 4:5). 

 Your conscience is God’s internal agent to alert you when you’ve done something you believe to be morally wrong. Most sinners avoid the voice of their conscience, but saints should consider their conscience to be a faithful friend. For more on this subject, click here.

  If you feel guilty, you must ask the indwelling Holy Spirit to reveal to you why you feel guilty, and repent. This should be done at least once a day. Sometimes, it takes the reading of Scripture to reveal the hidden motives of the heart (Hebrews 4:12). In order to regularly recalibrate your relationship with Christ, you must come to Christ habitually. For more on this subject, click here.