Day 5/18 – Doing Things For God

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Thoughts from the Diary of a Desperate Man by Walter A Henrichsen (“Walt”)
Doing Things For God
Day One Hundred Thirty-eight

“Concerning this house which thou art in building, if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee, which I spake unto David thy father.” 1 Kings 6:12

Solomon’s Temple was David’s idea. When David became King of Israel he said, “See now, I dwell in an house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.”214 God responded by noting that from the beginning He had never dwelt in a house, nor commanded any of His people to build one for Him. Other gods may dwell in temples, for they aren’t going anywhere, but a temple, as symbolized by His living in a tent, cannot contain God. Nevertheless God allowed David’s son Solomon to build a temple.

During the construction of the temple in Solomon’s reign, God acknowledges his act of devotion, but reminds him that what He really wants is obedience. When you become the object of God’s grace and ponder the wonder of His redemption, it evokes a desire for reciprocity. “If only I can do something for God.” In earlier centuries His people built great cathedrals to His glory. Today people come from afar to admire the aesthetics and wonder at the architecture and engineering of the Gothic arches and flying buttresses, while giving scant thought of the God for whom it was built. More often than not, what you seek to do for God will call the world’s attention to you rather than to the One for whom you are doing it.

Your heart may burst with love and devotion to Christ, causing you to want to do great things for Him. This is only natural and God accepts such expressions. But remember what He said to King Solomon: “…walk in My statutes and execute My judgments, and keep all My commandments…” Nothing you ever do for God can act as a substitute for a life of obedience.

214 II Samuel 7:2

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1 Chronicles 4-6 John 6:1-21 (New King James Version)

1 Chronicles 4-6
The Family of Judah
4 The sons of Judah were Perez, Hezron, [a]Carmi, Hur, and Shobal. 2 And [b]Reaiah the son of Shobal begot Jahath, and Jahath begot Ahumai and Lahad. These were the families of the Zorathites. 3 These were the sons of the father of Etam: Jezreel, Ishma, and Idbash; and the name of their sister was Hazelelponi; 4 and Penuel was the father of Gedor, and Ezer was the father of Hushah.
These were the sons of Hur, the firstborn of Ephrathah the father of Bethlehem.
5 And Ashhur the father of Tekoa had two wives, Helah and Naarah. 6 Naarah bore him Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari. These were the sons of Naarah. 7 The sons of Helah were Zereth, Zohar, and Ethnan; 8 and Koz begot Anub, Zobebah, and the families of Aharhel the son of Harum.
9 Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name [c]Jabez, saying, “Because I bore him in pain.” 10 And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, “Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my [d]territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!” So God granted him what he requested.
11 Chelub the brother of Shuhah begot Mehir, who was the father of Eshton. 12 And Eshton begot Beth-Rapha, Paseah, and Tehinnah the father of [e]Ir-Nahash. These were the men of Rechah.
13 The sons of Kenaz were Othniel and Seraiah. The sons of Othniel were [f]Hathath, 14 and Meonothai who begot Ophrah. Seraiah begot Joab the father of Ge Harashim,[g] for they were craftsmen. 15 The sons of Caleb the son of Jephunneh were Iru, Elah, and Naam. The son of Elah was [h]Kenaz. 16 The sons of Jehallelel were Ziph, Ziphah, Tiria, and Asarel. 17 The sons of Ezrah were Jether, Mered, Epher, and Jalon. And [i]Mered’s wife bore Miriam, Shammai, and Ishbah the father of Eshtemoa. 18 ([j]His wife Jehudijah bore Jered the father of Gedor, Heber the father of Sochoh, and Jekuthiel the father of Zanoah.) And these were the sons of Bithiah the daughter of Pharaoh, whom Mered took.
19 The sons of Hodiah’s wife, the sister of Naham, were the fathers of Keilah the Garmite and of Eshtemoa the Maachathite. 20 And the sons of Shimon were Amnon, Rinnah, Ben-Hanan, and Tilon. And the sons of Ishi were Zoheth and Ben-Zoheth.
21 The sons of Shelah the son of Judah were Er the father of Lecah, Laadah the father of Mareshah, and the families of the house of the linen workers of the house of Ashbea; 22 also Jokim, the men of Chozeba, and Joash; Saraph, who ruled in Moab, and Jashubi-Lehem. Now the [k]records are ancient. 23 These were the potters and those who dwell at [l]Netaim and [m]Gederah; there they dwelt with the king for his work.
The Family of Simeon
24 The sons of Simeon were [n]Nemuel, Jamin, [o]Jarib, [p]Zerah, and Shaul, 25 Shallum his son, Mibsam his son, and Mishma his son. 26 And the sons of Mishma were Hamuel his son, Zacchur his son, and Shimei his son. 27 Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters; but his brothers did not have many children, nor did any of their families multiply as much as the children of Judah.
28 They dwelt at Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar Shual, 29 [q]Bilhah, Ezem, [r]Tolad, 30 Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag, 31 Beth Marcaboth, [s]Hazar Susim, Beth Biri, and at Shaaraim. These were their cities until the reign of David. 32 And their villages were [t]Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan—five cities— 33 and all the villages that were around these cities as far as [u]Baal. These were their dwelling places, and they maintained their genealogy: 34 Meshobab, Jamlech, and Joshah the son of Amaziah; 35 Joel, and Jehu the son of Joshibiah, the son of Seraiah, the son of Asiel; 36 Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, and Benaiah; 37 Ziza the son of Shiphi, the son of Allon, the son of Jedaiah, the son of Shimri, the son of Shemaiah— 38 these mentioned by name were leaders in their families, and their father’s house increased greatly.
39 So they went to the entrance of Gedor, as far as the east side of the valley, to seek pasture for their flocks. 40 And they found rich, good pasture, and the land was broad, quiet, and peaceful; for some Hamites formerly lived there.
41 These recorded by name came in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and they attacked[v] their tents and the Meunites who were found there, and utterly destroyed them, as it is to this day. So they dwelt in their place, because there was pasture for their flocks there. 42 Now some of them, five hundred men of the sons of Simeon, went to Mount Seir, having as their captains Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel, the sons of Ishi. 43 And they [w]defeated the rest of the Amalekites who had escaped. They have dwelt there to this day.
The Family of Reuben
5 Now the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel—he was indeed the firstborn, but because he defiled his father’s bed, his birthright was given to the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, so that the genealogy is not listed according to the birthright; 2 yet Judah prevailed over his brothers, and from him came a ruler, although [x]the birthright was Joseph’s— 3 the sons of Reuben the firstborn of Israel were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.
4 The sons of Joel were Shemaiah his son, Gog his son, Shimei his son, 5 Micah his son, Reaiah his son, Baal his son, 6 and Beerah his son, whom [y]Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria carried into captivity. He was leader of the Reubenites. 7 And his brethren by their families, when the genealogy of their generations was registered: the chief, Jeiel, and Zechariah, 8 and Bela the son of Azaz, the son of Shema, the son of Joel, who dwelt in Aroer, as far as Nebo and Baal Meon. 9 Eastward they settled as far as the [z]entrance of the wilderness this side of the River Euphrates, because their cattle had [aa]multiplied in the land of Gilead.
10 Now in the days of Saul they made war with the Hagrites, who fell by their hand; and they dwelt in their tents throughout the entire area east of Gilead.
The Family of Gad
11 And the children of Gad dwelt next to them in the land of Bashan as far as Salcah: 12 Joel was the chief, Shapham the next, then Jaanai and Shaphat in Bashan, 13 and their brethren of their father’s house: Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jachan, Zia, and Eber—seven in all. 14 These were the children of Abihail the son of Huri, the son of Jaroah, the son of Gilead, the son of Michael, the son of Jeshishai, the son of Jahdo, the son of Buz; 15 Ahi the son of Abdiel, the son of Guni, was chief of their father’s house. 16 And the Gadites dwelt in Gilead, in Bashan and in its villages, and in all the [ab]common-lands of Sharon within their borders. 17 All these were registered by genealogies in the days of Jotham king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam king of Israel.
18 The sons of Reuben, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh had forty-four thousand seven hundred and sixty valiant men, men able to bear shield and sword, to shoot with the bow, and skillful in war, who went to war. 19 They made war with the Hagrites, Jetur, Naphish, and Nodab. 20 And they were helped against them, and the Hagrites were delivered into their hand, and all who were with them, for they cried out to God in the battle. He [ac]heeded their prayer, because they put their trust in Him. 21 Then they took away their livestock—fifty thousand of their camels, two hundred and fifty thousand of their sheep, and two thousand of their donkeys—also one hundred thousand of their men; 22 for many fell dead, because the war was God’s. And they dwelt in their place until the captivity.
The Family of Manasseh (East)
23 So the children of the half-tribe of Manasseh dwelt in the land. Their numbers increased from Bashan to Baal Hermon, that is, to Senir, or Mount Hermon. 24 These were the heads of their fathers’ houses: Epher, Ishi, Eliel, Azriel, Jeremiah, Hodaviah, and Jahdiel. They were mighty men of valor, famous men, and heads of their fathers’ houses.
25 And they were unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. 26 So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, that is, Tiglath-Pileser[ad] king of Assyria. He carried the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into captivity. He took them to Halah, Habor, Hara, and the river of Gozan to this day.
The Family of Levi
6 The sons of Levi were Gershon,[ae] Kohath, and Merari. 2 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 3 The children of Amram were Aaron, Moses, and Miriam. And the sons of Aaron were Nadab, Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 4 Eleazar begot Phinehas, and Phinehas begot Abishua; 5 Abishua begot Bukki, and Bukki begot Uzzi; 6 Uzzi begot Zerahiah, and Zerahiah begot Meraioth; 7 Meraioth begot Amariah, and Amariah begot Ahitub; 8 Ahitub begot Zadok, and Zadok begot Ahimaaz; 9 Ahimaaz begot Azariah, and Azariah begot Johanan; 10 Johanan begot Azariah (it was he who ministered as priest in the temple[af] that Solomon built in Jerusalem); 11 Azariah begot Amariah, and Amariah begot Ahitub; 12 Ahitub begot Zadok, and Zadok begot [ag]Shallum; 13 Shallum begot Hilkiah, and Hilkiah begot Azariah; 14 Azariah begot Seraiah, and Seraiah begot Jehozadak. 15 Jehozadak went into captivity when the Lord carried Judah and Jerusalem into captivity by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar.
16 The sons of Levi were Gershon,[ah] Kohath, and Merari. 17 These are the names of the sons of Gershon: Libni and Shimei. 18 The sons of Kohath were Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. 19 The sons of Merari were Mahli and Mushi. Now these are the families of the Levites according to their fathers: 20 Of Gershon were Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, 21 [ai]Joah his son, [aj]Iddo his son, Zerah his son, and [ak]Jeatherai his son. 22 The sons of Kohath were [al]Amminadab his son, Korah his son, Assir his son, 23 Elkanah his son, Ebiasaph his son, Assir his son, 24 Tahath his son, Uriel his son, Uzziah his son, and Shaul his son. 25 The sons of Elkanah were Amasai and Ahimoth. 26 As for Elkanah, the sons of Elkanah were [am]Zophai his son, [an]Nahath his son, 27 [ao]Eliab his son, Jeroham his son, and Elkanah his son. 28 The sons of Samuel were [ap]Joel the firstborn, and Abijah [aq]the second. 29 The sons of Merari were Mahli, Libni his son, Shimei his son, Uzzah his son, 30 Shimea his son, Haggiah his son, and Asaiah his son.
Musicians in the House of the Lord
31 Now these are the men whom David appointed over the service of song in the house of the Lord, after the ark came to rest. 32 They were ministering with music before the dwelling place of the tabernacle of meeting, until Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem, and they served in their office according to their order.
33 And these are the ones who [ar]ministered with their sons: Of the sons of the Kohathites were Heman the singer, the son of Joel, the son of Samuel, 34 the son of Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of [as]Eliel, the son of [at]Toah, 35 the son of Zuph, the son of Elkanah, the son of Mahath, the son of Amasai, 36 the son of Elkanah, the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, 37 the son of Tahath, the son of Assir, the son of Ebiasaph, the son of Korah, 38 the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, the son of Israel. 39 And his brother Asaph, who stood at his right hand, was Asaph the son of Berachiah, the son of Shimea, 40 the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah, 41 the son of Ethni, the son of Zerah, the son of Adaiah, 42 the son of Ethan, the son of Zimmah, the son of Shimei, 43 the son of Jahath, the son of Gershon, the son of Levi.
44 Their brethren, the sons of Merari, on the left hand, were [au]Ethan the son of [av]Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch, 45 the son of Hashabiah, the son of Amaziah, the son of Hilkiah, 46 the son of Amzi, the son of Bani, the son of Shamer, 47 the son of Mahli, the son of Mushi, the son of Merari, the son of Levi.
48 And their brethren, the Levites, were appointed to every kind of service of the tabernacle of the house of God.
The Family of Aaron
49 But Aaron and his sons offered sacrifices on the altar of burnt offering and on the altar of incense, for all the work of the Most Holy Place, and to make atonement for Israel, according to all that Moses the servant of God had commanded. 50 Now these are the sons of Aaron: Eleazar his son, Phinehas his son, Abishua his son, 51 Bukki his son, Uzzi his son, Zerahiah his son, 52 Meraioth his son, Amariah his son, Ahitub his son, 53 Zadok his son, and Ahimaaz his son.
Dwelling Places of the Levites
54 Now these are their dwelling places throughout their settlements in their territory, for they were given by lot to the sons of Aaron, of the family of the Kohathites: 55 They gave them Hebron in the land of Judah, with its surrounding [aw]common-lands. 56 But the fields of the city and its villages they gave to Caleb the son of Jephunneh. 57 And to the sons of Aaron they gave one of the cities of refuge, Hebron; also Libnah with its common-lands, Jattir, Eshtemoa with its common-lands, 58 [ax]Hilen with its common-lands, Debir with its common-lands, 59 [ay]Ashan with its common-lands, and Beth Shemesh with its common-lands. 60 And from the tribe of Benjamin: Geba with its common-lands, [az]Alemeth with its common-lands, and Anathoth with its common-lands. All their cities among their families were thirteen.
61 To the rest of the family of the tribe of the Kohathites they gave by lot ten cities from half the tribe of Manasseh. 62 And to the sons of Gershon, throughout their families, they gave thirteen cities from the tribe of Issachar, from the tribe of Asher, from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the tribe of Manasseh in Bashan. 63 To the sons of Merari, throughout their families, they gave twelve cities from the tribe of Reuben, from the tribe of Gad, and from the tribe of Zebulun. 64 So the children of Israel gave these cities with their [ba]common-lands to the Levites. 65 And they gave by lot from the tribe of the children of Judah, from the tribe of the children of Simeon, and from the tribe of the children of Benjamin these cities which are called by their names.
66 Now some of the families of the sons of Kohath were given cities as their territory from the tribe of Ephraim. 67 And they gave them one of the cities of refuge, Shechem with its common-lands, in the mountains of Ephraim, also Gezer with its common-lands, 68 Jokmeam with its common-lands, Beth Horon with its common-lands, 69 Aijalon with its common-lands, and Gath Rimmon with its common-lands. 70 And from the half-tribe of Manasseh: Aner with its common-lands and Bileam with its common-lands, for the rest of the family of the sons of Kohath.
71 From the family of the half-tribe of Manasseh the sons of Gershon were given Golan in Bashan with its common-lands and [bb]Ashtaroth with its common-lands. 72 And from the tribe of Issachar: [bc]Kedesh with its common-lands, Daberath with its common-lands, 73 Ramoth with its common-lands, and Anem with its common-lands. 74 And from the tribe of Asher: Mashal with its common-lands, Abdon with its common-lands, 75 Hukok with its common-lands, and Rehob with its common-lands. 76 And from the tribe of Naphtali: Kedesh in Galilee with its common-lands, Hammon with its common-lands, and Kirjathaim with its common-lands.
77 From the tribe of Zebulun the rest of the children of Merari were given [bd]Rimmon with its common-lands and Tabor with its common-lands. 78 And on the other side of the Jordan, across from Jericho, on the east side of the Jordan, they were given from the tribe of Reuben: Bezer in the wilderness with its common-lands, Jahzah with its common-lands, 79 Kedemoth with its common-lands, and Mephaath with its common-lands. 80 And from the tribe of Gad: Ramoth in Gilead with its common-lands, Mahanaim with its common-lands, 81 Heshbon with its common-lands, and Jazer with its common-lands.
Footnotes:
• 1 Chronicles 4:1 Chelubai, 1 Chr. 2:9 or Caleb, 1 Chr. 2:18
• 1 Chronicles 4:2 Haroeh, 1 Chr. 2:52
• 1 Chronicles 4:9 Lit. He Will Cause Pain
• 1 Chronicles 4:10 border
• 1 Chronicles 4:12 Lit. City of Nahash
• 1 Chronicles 4:13 LXX, Vg. add and Meonothai
• 1 Chronicles 4:14 Lit. Valley of Craftsmen
• 1 Chronicles 4:15 Or Uknaz
• 1 Chronicles 4:17 Lit. she
• 1 Chronicles 4:18 Or His Judean wife
• 1 Chronicles 4:22 Lit. words
• 1 Chronicles 4:23 Lit. Plants
• 1 Chronicles 4:23 Lit. Hedges
• 1 Chronicles 4:24 Jemuel, Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15; Num. 26:12
• 1 Chronicles 4:24 Jachin, Gen. 46:10; Num. 26:12
• 1 Chronicles 4:24 Zohar, Gen. 46:10; Ex. 6:15
• 1 Chronicles 4:29 Balah, Josh. 19:3
• 1 Chronicles 4:29 Eltolad, Josh. 19:4
• 1 Chronicles 4:31 Hazar Susah, Josh. 19:5
• 1 Chronicles 4:32 Ether, Josh. 19:7
• 1 Chronicles 4:33 Baalath Beer, Josh. 19:8
• 1 Chronicles 4:41 Lit. struck
• 1 Chronicles 4:43 Lit. struck
• 1 Chronicles 5:2 the right of the firstborn
• 1 Chronicles 5:6 Heb. Tilgath-Pilneser
• 1 Chronicles 5:9 beginning
• 1 Chronicles 5:9 increased
• 1 Chronicles 5:16 open lands
• 1 Chronicles 5:20 Lit. was entreated for them
• 1 Chronicles 5:26 Heb. Tilgath-Pilneser
• 1 Chronicles 6:1 Or Gershom, v. 16
• 1 Chronicles 6:10 Lit. house
• 1 Chronicles 6:12 Meshullam, 1 Chr. 9:11
• 1 Chronicles 6:16 Heb. Gershom, an alternate spelling for Gershon, vv. 1, 17, 20, 43, 62, 71
• 1 Chronicles 6:21 Ethan, v. 42
• 1 Chronicles 6:21 Adaiah, v. 41
• 1 Chronicles 6:21 Ethni, v. 41
• 1 Chronicles 6:22 Izhar, vv. 2, 18
• 1 Chronicles 6:26 Zuph, v. 35; 1 Sam. 1:1
• 1 Chronicles 6:26 Toah, v. 34
• 1 Chronicles 6:27 Eliel, v. 34
• 1 Chronicles 6:28 So with LXX, Syr., Arab.; cf. v. 33 and 1 Sam. 8:2
• 1 Chronicles 6:28 Heb. Vasheni
• 1 Chronicles 6:33 Lit. stood with
• 1 Chronicles 6:34 Elihu, 1 Sam. 1:1
• 1 Chronicles 6:34 Tohu, 1 Sam. 1:1
• 1 Chronicles 6:44 Jeduthun, 1 Chr. 9:16; 25:1, 3, 6; 2 Chr. 35:15; Ps. 62:title
• 1 Chronicles 6:44 Or Kushaiah
• 1 Chronicles 6:55 open lands
• 1 Chronicles 6:58 Holon, Josh. 21:15
• 1 Chronicles 6:59 Ain, Josh. 21:16
• 1 Chronicles 6:60 Almon, Josh. 21:18
• 1 Chronicles 6:64 open lands
• 1 Chronicles 6:71 Beeshterah, Josh. 21:27
• 1 Chronicles 6:72 Kishon, Josh. 21:28
• 1 Chronicles 6:77 Heb. Rimmono, an alternate spelling of Rimmon, 1 Chr. 4:32

John 6:1-21
Feeding the Five Thousand
6 After these things Jesus went over the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. 2 Then a great multitude followed Him, because they saw His signs which He performed on those who were diseased.[a] 3 And Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat with His disciples.
4 Now the Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. 5 Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” 6 But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.
7 Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may have a little.”
8 One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, 9 “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?”
10 Then Jesus said, “Make the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11 And Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks He distributed them [b]to the disciples, and the disciples to those sitting down; and likewise of the fish, as much as they wanted. 12 So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.” 13 Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. 14 Then those men, when they had seen the sign that Jesus did, said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”
Jesus Walks on the Sea
15 Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.
16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18 Then the sea arose because a great wind was blowing. 19 So when they had rowed about [c]three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid. 20 But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
Footnotes:
• John 6:2 sick
• John 6:11 NU omits to the disciples, and the disciples
• John 6:19 Lit. 25 or 30 stadia

Mark 11:24 ²⁴Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in Prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.

Colossians 4:2 ²Devote yourselves to Prayer, being watchful and thankful.

James 5:16 ¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The Prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.