so that the people understood the reading.
Nehemiah 8:7
And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground. Also Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, Pelaiah, the Levites, helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.
Leviticus 10:11
and you are to teach the people of Israel all the statutes that the Lord has spoken to them by Moses
Malachi 2:7
For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts. But you have turned aside from the way. You have caused many to stumble by your instruction
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Acts 2:36
And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 7:51
“You stiff- necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.
Can you imagine what it was like to live in a time where the Holy Spirit did not indwell you. (this assumes you have repented of sin and trust in Jesus Christ for forgiveness) There are two points that come to mind today. We know that Jesus promised to send a helper (the Holy Spirit) to us after His resurrection. The Holy Spirit will guide and lead us into all truth, convict of sin, and confirm in our heart where God is leading us. In the time of Nehemiah people did not have this indwelling and required instruction to be explained so that they could understand. This is much like our understanding of what was being preached/taught prior to being saved. We could not understand or connect the promises of God to our everyday lives. However upon receiving the Holy Spirit we are given this gift. It is not all at once but a life long learning – precept upon precept, line upon line, promise upon promise, application upon life’s journey. The second point is that the people chose and wanted Nehemiah to teach them. Since Christ’s death and resurrection and the gift of the Holy Spirit, we are given great opportunity to grow in our understanding of God, His purpose, and how to live in this world so that we can be used by Him. It seems our lives get so caught up in everyday stuff that we lose sight of this gift. And because we do not guard our selves and keep Him first we lose sight of our purpose. How can the Holy Spirit speak to our heart if we spend no time in God’s word? How can we know our true purpose if we neglect the source of our leading? How can we grow if the only food is what we hear in a 30 minute teaching from our pastor? The answer is we will not grow. As Paul said “You are infants on milk when you should be eating solid food”. It is good for us to see people of Nehemiah’s time who chose to be taught as an example – And for us to commit to spending time each day feeding on God’s word with a desire for Him to teach us.