“If any one of the common people sins unintentionally in doing any one of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done and realizes his guilt or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring for his offering a goat, a female without blemish for his sin which he has committed.”
-Leviticus 4:27–28

What’s interesting about these verses and we see this at different points in Leviticus is a differentiation or distinction made between intentional and unintentional sin, or even here in verse 28, a situation where you didn’t realize you had sinned and it was made known to you.

We sin in ways we do not even realize. We rejoice that God has covered our sin in Christ and ask for grace to avoid intentional and unintentional sin.

So there are times in our lives when we deliberately choose to sin. We know something is wrong and we choose to do that which is wrong. We know that we’re supposed to do that which is right and we choose not to do that which is right.

Leviticus 4:27–28 Addresses Unintentional Sin

The same time, there are other circumstances where we sin against God but we didn’t deliberately think through that, maybe even realize that we were doing something that was going against God’s command, and so we realize that, well, it’s still sin, it’s against God’s command and it needs sacrifice.

We need Jesus’ blood to cover over all kinds of sin. And so, when we read Leviticus 4:27–28, it causes us to realize we are sinful in ways we don’t even realize. Like, there are unintentional ways we go against God’s design. We have blind spots in our lives where we are not obeying Him, where we need to have uncovered. We need other people to show us that so that we can confess it.

This Verse Reveals the Need for Christian Community

We need God’s word to reveal this to us. We need others in the church to help us see sin in our lives, sometimes we don’t see on our own. So, these verses just create a deeper sense of humility. I know with me, I think in all of us, to realize we are so prone to sin in so many ways, which means we need so much grace on an ongoing continual basis.

And we need to humbly ask God to open our eyes to areas where we may be sinning, we don’t even realize it. And humbly seek out others in community, in the church, who will help us see sin in our lives when we may not realize it ourselves.

Leviticus 4:27–28 Thanks God for His Grace and Mercy

So, God, help us, we pray. We are a sinful people. We are so prone to wander in so many ways, ways we don’t even realize. God, I’m prone to sins in ways that I don’t even realize I’m prone to sin. And so, I pray for grace in my own life, God, show me. Show me any and every area of my life that is not pleasing and glorifying to you. God, I want to honor you in every area of my life. I pray this for those who are listening right now, God, that you would open their eyes to see things they may not see, Lord to use your church in our lives to point these things out. Use your word to open our eyes, to see areas of our lives where we need to grow in obedience to you.

God, we pray for your help. We pray for your grace and your mercy and covering over all of our sins. Jesus, thank you, thank you, for covering over all of our sin, no matter what the kind by your blood.

So we pray with gratitude and we pray with humility, God, we are so weak and prone to sin. We are so prone to give into temptation, so we pray just as Jesus taught us to pray, lead us not into temptation, but deliver from us evil in every way, help us to honor you. Help us to avoid all sin, intentional, unintentional, and help us to live lives that are pleasing to you and to humbly confess our sin when we realize it, knowing that your mercy is waiting for us. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.