ANCIENT LONGINGS

Israel during the time of Nebuchadnezzar had one major desire and that was the desire to be free. They daily cried out to God asking him to release them from Babylonian enslavement, and they longed to be back in their homeland. Today, individuals pray just as fervently, but the difference is that they are not connecting with God or with his Holy Spirit.

​When Israel prayed during the time of Nebuchadnezzar, there was no interception of their prayers. Israel as a nation had the covering of the Holy Spirit of God who ensured that every prayer they prayed was submitted directly to God. In sharp contrast, today the relationship with the Holy Spirit of God is muted at best, but largely non-existent. The Holy Spirit of God must be in you and must be acknowledged in order for him to be of benefit to you.

When the covering of the Holy Spirit is over a nation, its spiritual and religious leaders bear responsibility for ensuring that the covering remains intact. For the past two thousand years we have lived in a time when God has sought to pour out his Holy Spirit individually on all people. While the religious leaders can seek to ensure that the spiritual covering is intact, ultimately, each person bears individual responsibility for maintaining the connection with the Holy Spirit of God for themselves and for their minor children. 

The problem of connecting with God is compounded by the fact that certain individuals who have the indwelling Holy Spirit are in fact aligned with Satan. Thus, Satan not only has authority to block every prayer that is prayed by someone who does not have the indwelling Holy Spirit, but also, he gains added power from these individuals. Human beings have unlimited power and authority, especially when connected to God's Holy Spirit. Everyone with access to the Holy Spirit of God has access to the unlimited power and authority of God. If they misuse that authority and give their power to Satan, the result can be catastrophic. It is equivalent to a government official committing treason.

When the covering of the Holy Spirit was over the nation of Israel, they often acted quickly to excommunicate anyone who dared to violate God's commands. When the nation as a whole went astray and violated God's commands, their intense suffering and persecution as a nation eventually motivated them to repent. It is for that reason that the Holy Spirit of God will be blocked from entering certain individuals who refuse to align with the purposes of God and deliberately continue to perpetuate evil practices (Acts 8:9-25).

The Holy Spirit of God indwells individuals when they request him to do so for the specific purpose of teaching them how to align with spiritual truth. Spiritual truth is that which allows the universe to function. If instead they are seeking to destroy what spiritual truth would have them build, they have created an inherent conflict of interest. One cannot align with spiritual truth yet do what is destructive to that truth. Alignment with truth requires that we uplift and embrace every aspect of that truth.