Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore, let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach. For we have no continuing city here, but we seek one to come.
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My father told me once that if people gossip about past sins for which you have already repented and been forgiven by Christ, their gossip is a form of persecution. But if people gossip about sins you have committed and not repented of, then their gossip is a form of deserved prosecution.
God said that if a wicked man repents, then "all his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him" (Ezek. 18:22). But that is true only in heaven. On earth, transgressions long since repented of and forgiven are often mentioned again by the ungodly. Solomon described those who bring up past sins of forgiven men as "digging up evil with their lips". When God forgives a sin, he forgives the person, and part of that forgiveness is that He refrains from mentioning the embarrassing sin to you again. That is the love of God. But men without the love of God will use another's past sins to their own advantage, whether or not the blood of Christ has washed them away.
Paul referred to his old, sinful nature as "the old man", as compared to "the new man" that he had become in Christ. His enemies brought up his former evil conduct, but God never mentioned it to him again. Sister Natalie made me laugh once with a wonderful observation on this subject. She told me that people can dig up that "old girl" she used to be, but they couldn't make her live again. They can dig her up, but they can't give her life! What a wonderful thought!
People can dig up the old me and talk about former evil, foolish deeds all they want, but they can't make me act again the way that "old man" acted. That man is dead, and I am free, a new man in Christ! Isn't that glorious? Men can talk about how foolishly that old man acted, but they cannot make me act foolish! This is a new man! They can talk about how ungodly that old man was, but they cannot make this new man ungodly! I am happy and free, forever!
If people talk about your sins, your only real concern is to make certain that the only sins they have to talk about are ones you no longer commit. If you are still sinning, God is using their talk to convict you; their talk is part of God's prosecution of your sin. But if Jesus has taken your sins away, then their talk is persecution, and God will bless you for their callousness. Stay humble, and do not strike back. Let the Lord take up your cause.
In our happy conversation, Sister Natalie went on to say, "I am alive forevermore!" At that, I had to just stop and praise God. "If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature", wrote Paul. And that new creature does not ever have to be anything but himself! I am alive in Christ, with a new nature, FOREVER! My new nature is divine, and my spirit is clean. Let your "new man" live! and let your "old man" stay buried with Christ. It doesn't matter if men try to dig up your old past with their lips; it only matters that Jesus loves you, that he has forgiven you, cleansed you, and made you a part of his family.
Rejoice in the merciful work of God and ignore the evil works and words of unmerciful men. Live! and let the dead dig in the graveyard of God's forgiven sins if they want to. What difference does it make what ungodly men do or say about anything-including what they might say about you whose sins have been washed away by the blood of the Lamb? Rejoice in the Lord forever, and keep your eyes on him. That is the only way to maintain perfect peace with God.