The carpet stain would not go away no matter how many times I shampooed it and regardless of what chemical I used. I even tried diluted bleach. It would disappear for a week and then reappear as bad as ever. Donna and I found a clearance sale for hardwood flooring we liked. The next day I started pulling up the old carpet in my office. I soon discovered the source of our stain problem. The padding underneath had an oily substance in it that was bleeding through the carpet making the spot. The problem wasn’t the carpet, but the source of the stain was hidden underneath.
We can be certain King David never dealt with stained carpet, but he perceived the effects of hidden sin in a similar way. He had learned sin hidden in the heart could stain one’s life. He prayed, Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me (Psa 139:23, 24). He asks God to examine his heart and expose anything sinful. A self-help technique known, as Johari’s window is helpful in showing there may be unseen sin in our life. The window is divided into four quadrants. We all have aspects about ourselves that everyone knows, aspects known by others but not by us, aspects known only by us and God, and aspects known only by God.
Scripture mentions several categories of unseen sin. The most common would be hidden or secret sins. These are the areas we deliberately try and hide from others. We know it and God knows it. You are aware of our sins; you even know about our hidden sins (Ps 90:8 NET). For He knows the secrets of the heart (Psa 44:21). We also have sins that are unknown to us such as forgotten sin of the past, unintentional sin, and sins of ignorance. Please do not punish me for sins I am unaware of (Psalms 19:12 NET). Throughout our spiritual growth, God will make us aware of these areas not for forgiveness that happen when we received Christ, but in order that we deal with the damage, it may have caused. In His mercy, God knows it would overwhelm us if revealed all at once. The sacrificial system in the Old Testament provided sacrifices for both unintentional sins and sins of ignorance. Also if one person sins unintentionally, then he shall offer a one year old female goat for a sin offering (Num 15:27). Once a year on the Day of Atonement the high priest offered sacrifice for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance (Heb 9:7).
The good news for us is that Jesus’ death was an offering for all our sins. He was the fulfilment of all the Levitical sacrifices. He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption (Heb 9:12); so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many (9:28). Today for those who have received Christ as their Savior, forgiveness comes through confessing their sins. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness (1Jn 1:9). This verse gives several important lessons in reference to hidden or secret sins. The first step in dealing sin we are hiding in our life is admitting it to God and sometimes we have to admit it to ourselves. People try and hide things they know are wrong by saying, “it’s no big deal”, “I’ll deal with it later”, or “it doesn’t hurt anyone else”, etc. Solomon warned, If you hide your sins, you will not succeed (Pro 28:13).
One of the most vivid illustrations of the consequences of hidden sin is the story of Achan. Joshua and Israel, through God’s help, destroyed Jericho. The Lord instructed Joshua to kill and burn everything. They were not to take anything as a spoil. At their next battle in AI, the troops were defeated and thirty-six men were killed. God revealed to Joshua that someone had sinned and kept spoils. Achan confessed, I saw among the goods we seized a nice robe from Babylon, two hundred silver pieces, and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels. I wanted them, so I took them. They are hidden in the ground right in the middle of my tent with the silver underneath” (Jos 7:21 NET). The punishment Joshua enacted was that Achan, his family, his animals, and everything he owned were to be stoned until dead and then burned. Achan’s hidden sin cost him everything. His sin affected his family, and the families of the thirty-six dead soldiers.
The second lesson from the verse on confessing our sins is that God will also cleanse us from all unrighteousness. We confess our sins and He forgives us, yet one more element that many miss is allowing the Holy Spirit to cleanse. Sin is the act and unrighteousness is the cause. I see it as the padding under a carpet causing the stain. Unrighteousness is something in our life or heart the Holy Spirit needs to change, or destroy and remove from our life. This is part of our ongoing process of perfecting holiness (2 Corin 7:1).
Sustaining Word for the Week: Pray the prayer of David, Search me, O God, and know my heart; And see if there be any hurtful way in me.