Okay, so I'll admit that I have really been struggling with this one. I just couldn't make the leap. In the first six chapters it was all about the building of the wall and the associated hardships. In the seventh chapter the wall was done and Nehemiah made the transition to taking care of the city by placing people in charge of the wall and recording all of the names of the people. I just could not see the connection between those first seven chapters and chapter eight. In this chapter they gather the people and read the law of Moses. I read it and re-read it. I just couldn't get what I was missing. Then something jumped off of the page at me. In verse two it says that the law was read to "all who could hear with understanding." That changed the entire chapter for me. They weren't reading the law to everyone just for the sake of reading it. They weren't just reading the law at all. They were trying to ensure that they did not repeat past mistakes. For those of you who have never read through the Mosaic law it is very difficult to understand. If you would like a taste of some of the rules and regulations just read through a couple of chapters of Leviticus. Nehemiah was also not going to try to teach everyone the law. Some people would get it and some wouldn't. The target audience was the ones who could grasp the information. There are a few good life lessons in this chapter.
First, ignorance is no excuse. Nehemiah understood that the reason that the walls and the city needed to be rebuilt is because the people had failed to follow the law. It didn't matter if that failure was due to ignorance or rebellion. Failure was failure and it resulted in destruction. We need to understand that contrary to popular opinion ignorance is not bliss. We must educate ourselves if we are to ACHIEVE and MAINTAIN success.
Second, we can't reach everyone. I have often seen preachers, teachers, and good leaders become disheartened and frustrated because they weren't reaching the number that they thought they should. That is enough to frustrate anyone. We must remember that there are seasons to every one's life. What we are trying to get through to them may not be appropriate for their current season. If you plant seeds out of season you will not see immediate growth. That doesn't mean that your time and efforts are wasted. When the conditions are right then you will see growth. My wife and I have struggled and struggled getting our yard to grow the way we want it since buying our house. It was new construction and there were a lot of bare spots. We have laid seed year after year only to see minimal results. This year apparently the conditions were right because we are seeing growth in areas that we don't remember planting seed. People are the same.
Finally, we must learn from the past. It has been said that those who do not learn from the past are doomed to repeat it. Nehemiah wanted to avoid the trouble of trying to rebuild the wall again. Mistakes and failures are a part of life and, in my opinion, some of the most powerful teachers. However, they only work if we pay attention and learn from them.
