Joshua ended on a high note—God leading His people to victory after victory and His people declaring their trust in God again and again. But then we turn the pages of history to Judges and a time when, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes.” It was a time much like our own. Will He judge His people again? Will The One Story come to a screeching halt? Who still trusts God? The answer may just surprise you.

With Episode 7 of Season 2 we take yet another turn in The One Story, a good turn for a change. Having spent 40 years mired in the wilderness because of unbelief and rebellion, a new generation of Israelites is prepared to trust the LORD and enter the Promised Land. Across the Jordan River awaits the land flowing with milk and honey . . . and walls and warriors. God gave the land to them, but they must take it.

The people have a leader, a God-given culture and they’re headed for The Promised Land. At the start of this episode the nation is about an 11-day journey from the Promised Land. They are on the verge of living out the promise made to Abraham long ago. What could possible go wrong?

God gave His great nation 2 holy-days—days forever to remember, days that formed Israel’s identity—The Passover (when Israel was saved from death) and The Exodus (when Israel was given new life). The people had a leader, they’re headed to The Promised Land but first they need a God- given culture.

Israel got the leader it so desperately needed—God-selected, God-trained and God-led. God rescued Moses from certain death and nurtured him in Pharaoh’s household, all providentially, in order to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. Moses will lead Israel by speaking God’s Word and backing it up with God’s validating miracles. Lead on, Moses!

In Season 2 of The One Story, God begins to answer some of questions that arose in Season 1. God's plan to bless the whole world begins with building a great nation. Certainly not how we'd do it! From our vantage point in Genesis 12 it's far from clear how building a great nation fits into God's larger plan to bless the world. That it does, and will eventually be wonderful, is not in doubt. It's ours now to see how God will do it. Hold on to your hats. It's a wild ride.

Where do great nations begin? With Founding Fathers! What do the Founding Fathers of the nation God promised need to be? Faithful to God, in order to be examples of faith to all who follow after all! The great nation, to be great, must live by faith. In Episode 1, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob laid the foundation. Let’s see how God began to build on it.

In Season 2 of The One Story, God begins to answer some of questions that arose in Season 1. God's plan to bless the whole world begins with building a great nation. Certainly not how we'd do it! From our vantage point in Genesis 12 it's far from clear how building a great nation fits into God's larger plan to bless the world. That it does, and will eventually be wonderful, is not in doubt. It's ours now to see how God will do it. Hold on to your hats. It's a wild ride.

It’s as if God said, “Let’s have a free-for-all,” then gave us Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world! When we have a free-for-all, all hell breaks loose. We fight to get our own way the old-fashioned way—by stampeding into, through, and over people no matter why, how or who. Our free-for-alls leave us all slaves to our sinful selves.
When God has a free-for-all, all heaven breaks loose. He invites everyone—red and yellow, black and white; Republicans and Democrats; men and women, boys and girls, of all ages and from all the ages—freely to receive in Christ all He promises. Promise . . . it’s All Free. Promise . . . you’ll be Freed Up! Promise . . . it’s Free for All.

Would you call yourself a “free spirit”—independent, uninhibited and liberated? We admire free spirits because we all long to be free. But to be a free spirit in the best sense of the word, we need the Free Spirit, the Holy Spirit, who alone can set us free. What’s more, He’s free for the taking. Who turns their back on the Free Spirit? Only fools, like some Galatian believers in Christ, distorting the Gospel by dissing God’s Free Spirit. Has God’s Free Spirit set you free? Do you know what He came to do? Are you willing to let Him do it? Or are you a fool? It’s your move. Either break out, or stay boxed in. Freed Up is what you need! The Free Spirit is the one who will do it . . . if you let Him.