Unintentional Sin 2

Peter swore, “A curse on me if I’m lying—I don’t know this man you’re talking about!” 72  And immediately the
rooster crowed the second time. Suddenly, Jesus’ words flashed through Peter’s mind: “Before the rooster crows
twice, you will deny three times that you even know me.” And he broke down and wept. Mark 14:71-72 NLT
In the Old Testament, there seems to be just two types of sin: ignorant (or unintentional) and
intentional (“sin with a high hand” cf. Num 15:30-31). The sacrificial system described in
Leviticus 1-7 is designed to deal with the first type. (The second type will have to be dealt with
on a case by case basis.) But the guilt offering, described in Leviticus 5 seems to address some
sins that are not ignorant, like not bearing witness to something you know happened or taking an
oath to something that did not happen. That makes me think that unintentional sins don’t have to
be ones where you commit the sin unknowingly.
What are these kinds of unintentional sin? They are ones where you fell, where you knew what
you were doing, but it was not something you planned in advance, something you committed
defiantly. I think of Peter. He did not go to Caiaphas’ house planning to deny Jesus, looking for
an opportunity to betray him? But while there, in a moment of trial, he failed. Did he intend to
sin? No, but he did, and when he was brought to his senses by the rooster’s crow, he knew it.
Regretting it, and possibly berating himself, he wept bitterly. How different his response was
from that of Judas, who had indeed planned to betray Jesus. Judas was remorseful, but he did not
repent. Peter did.
Can we by the power of the Holy Spirit be delivered from committing intentional sin? Yes, this is
what John means when he says that he is writing that we not sin (1 John 2:1). But living in that
delivered condition, we might still fall into temptation and commit an unintentional sin. That can
be confessed and we can be forgiven, as John says (1 John 1:9). This is the area where we should
be growing in holiness: we recognize where that temptation came from and are armed against it
the next time. Again, I say, the Christian can and should live in victory. Good news!