In Greek (the language in which the New Testament was written) the word for “sin” is amartia, which literally means “to miss the mark.” In archery, this same term is used to describe someone who aims at a target’s bull’s-eye but misses. For Christians, the “mark” for which we strive (or aim) is to live in communion with God, basing our own lives and actions on the life and actions of Jesus Christ. Hence, when we – consciously or unconsciously, voluntarily or involuntarily – miss this mark and fall short of our goal, we are said to have sinned.