Daily Devotional Series: Misguided Desires, Unseen Sins, and God’s Loving Redirection
Feb 20, 2025
Day 16 Month 2
Matt 17:1-13, Acts 23:12-35, Psalm 38, Leviticus 1-4
God’s Mercy in Our Ignorance
"When a leader sins, doing unintentionally any one of all the things that by the commandments of the Lord his God ought not to be done, and realizes his guilt, or the sin which he has committed is made known to him, he shall bring as his offering a goat, a male without blemish, and shall lay his hand on the head of the goat and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before the Lord; it is a sin offering." — Leviticus 4:22-24
Right and wrong aren’t always as clear-cut as we’d like. That can make pursuing holiness feel nerve-wracking. Through His Spirit, God gives us a desire to obey Him, yet our desire is imperfect, just like our obedience. No one has gone a full day, hour, or even minute without falling short of His standard.
Thankfully, God’s mercy provides atonement. Under the old covenant, sacrifices—bulls, lambs, or goats—were offered to atone for sin, even sins committed in ignorance. Leviticus 4:22 assumes that the one who sins unintentionally will eventually realize his guilt. God doesn’t leave His people in their ignorance—He reveals, corrects, and redirects.
David echoes this in Psalm 38:9: “O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you.” God sees our innermost desires, even when they’re misguided. His aim isn’t just to correct our actions but to realign our hearts. That’s why His response to wrong motives isn’t always punishment but loving redirection—just as He did with Peter at the Transfiguration. Peter, overwhelmed by Christ’s glory alongside Moses and Elijah, wanted to build tents for them. But God redirected him: “This is my beloved Son… listen to Him.” (Matthew 17:5) The focus wasn’t the Law or the Prophets—it was Christ, the one who would fulfill them through His sacrifice.
Misguided desires and ignorant sins aren’t reserved for the weak; they affect even the strongest in faith. I often put Paul in an almost Christ-like category (post-conversion, of course), yet he was just as sinful, knowingly and unknowingly, as you and me. Still, God’s grace sustained him. When forty men plotted his death, swearing not to eat or drink until he was dead, God had already promised: “Take courage. You will testify in Rome.” (Acts 23:11) His provision was undeniable—two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen escorted Paul to safety. Coincidence? Hardly.
The point is this: God’s mercy is unfathomable, His grace even deeper. Perfection is a standard held only to Christ, and He upheld it. Now, our ignorant sins and misguided desires are met not with condemnation but with loving redirection and faithful provision. His will is not dependent on our perfection. Rest in that.