No, We Can't , livre ebook

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© 2011 by Robert Stearns
Published by Chosen Books
11400 Hampshire Avenue South
Bloomington, Minnesota 55438
www.chosenbooks.com
Chosen Books is a division of
Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan
www.bakerpublishinggroup.com
Ebook edition created 2011
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ISBN 978-1-4412-3437-7
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Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations identified esv are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV Text Edition: 2007
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“Robert Stearns challenges us to recognize and confront forces of extremism that threaten the values of freedom and opportunity around the world.”
Senator Joseph Lieberman
“Robert Stearns’ proven leadership is a beacon of insight both within the Body of Christ and beyond. Robert brings balanced and informed perspective to the critical issues facing our world with clarity, competence and compassion.”
Jack Hayford, founding pastor, The Church On The Way, Van Nuys, California
“The culture of the 21st century (defined by Dr. George Hunter as The New Apostolic Age) is almost identical to the culture of the first-century Church. Today is truly the age of the ‘clash of cultures.’ Concerned people are asking questions that do not have easy or simplistic answers. Robert Stearns, in his profound new book, No, We Can’t, gives us an assessment of the vital issues the Church faces in this complex and diverse world. It is a book born to be read by every thinking person attempting to find his or her way in this unbelievably complex world.”
Tommy Reid, founding senior pastor, The Tabernacle, Buffalo, New York
“Robert Stearns presents provocative approaches to some of life’s difficult dilemmas, and to the deeper questions of meaning that touch us in the modern world.”
David Wolpe, rabbi, Sinai Temple, Los Angeles, California
“Robert Stearns does for us in this book what the very best real estate agents do for us when we seek to find a home. He walks us through the neighborhood of worldview thinking, lets us enter the houses and look around and then honestly points out the differences. But this book is not about real estate it is about life and eternity. Robert chooses the hard road of stating his mind and convictions based on a biblical worldview. Sometimes that is difficult, but after reading what Robert has to say, I am grateful we have his voice.”
Jerry Gillis, lead pastor, The Chapel at CrossPoint, Getzville, New York
“This book is such a timely, awakening word for Christians to understand the three primary worldviews that are prevalent today and how we must respond by God’s leading. We cannot ignore what is in opposition to our Christian faith and hope it will just go away. The love of Christ compels us to reach this world, and I believe you will be inspired as you read No, We Can’t to live, to demonstrate and to speak to others the Gospel of Jesus Christ.”
Sharon Daugherty, pastor, Victory Christian Center, Tulsa, Oklahoma
For Isaac, Daniel and Michael
in the hope you will inherit a more genuinely tolerant world
Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
Endorsements
Dedication
Foreword by Robert Morris
Acknowledgments
Introduction: “No, We Can’t What? ”
1: What the World Needs Now
2: The End of the World As We Know It
3: Cultural Kingdoms
4: The Three Houses
5: The Myth of Coexistence
6: The House of Radical Islam
7: The House of Militant Secularism
8: The House of Judeo-Christianity
9: The Spirituality of the Three Houses
10: Will the Real World Please Stand Up?
11: God’s House
12: Shalom
Notes
About the Author
Foreword
Several years ago, I was with my friend and mentor, Pastor Jack Hayford. We were walking and talking when he stopped abruptly. He laid his hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eye. “Robert,” he said, “have you met Robert Stearns?” I told Pastor Jack that I had not. Pastor Jack looked me directly in the eye and said strongly, “Listen to me. You need to know Robert Stearns and his ministry.”
It was all the encouragement I needed. Now, several years later, I have spoken at some of Eagles’ Wings leadership gatherings, Robert has spoken here at one of our pastors’ conferences at Gateway and we serve the Lord together in various ministry capacities.
Every once in a while, a book comes along that exactly captures the moment a generation is facing; it becomes a signpost that alters the direction of people’s lives. A book can hit the bull’s-eye center of the plans and purposes of God, inspiring those who read it to achieve their destinies. I believe the book you are holding in your hands is just such a book.
I have learned how important it is that we as the Body of Christ know how to apply the Word of God to each and every situation we encounter. The truth is that God’s Word has everything to do with what is going on in global events today. The reason I am backing this book is because it is full of key insights that will empower you to put God’s Word into action.
Like a modern-day prophet, Robert Stearns brings vital insight and strategy into how we can meet the challenges of our day. His integrity, character and commitment to the centrality of the Presence of God have caused Robert to be trusted and sought out by world leaders from every arena. He is brave enough to share a message that is not easy and comfortable and that will not be popular. It is nonetheless timely, perceptive and accurate, and we would do well to receive what it means for our lives so that we can live with conviction and purpose both now and in the days to come.
So, I’d like to look you directly in the eye and say to you, “Listen to me. Do you know Robert Stearns and his ministry? You need to.”
Robert Morris, founding senior pastor, Gateway Church (Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex); host, The Blessed Life
Acknowledgments
This book would not have been possible without the extraordinary talent, anointing and commitment of Sarah Wolf. Though I provided the thought architecture for this work, she is the master wordsmith who built it from there. Her contribution is profoundly appreciated.
I also thank the following individuals for their invaluable assistance in completing this project: Aaron Derstine, Dr. Larry Keefauver, Ryan Mauro, Noa Bursie, David Danglis and Jane Campbell.
Introduction
“No, We Can’t What? ”
In 1981, Harvard-based business guru William Ury co-wrote a bestselling book on the strategies of negotiating. He called his book Getting to Yes. In it, he detailed all the constructive strategies that could be employed to help different parties overcome their obstacles and come to a place of agreement, even those parties who may long have been at odds with one another. The business world rejoiced, and more than five million copies of his affirmative message were sold.
In 2007, however, Ury released a new work. The title? Quite shockingly, The Power of a Positive No.
To explain what could be perceived as an about-face, Ury states that, in the years between the writing of the two books, he had come to some startling revelations. “All too often,” he states, “we cannot bring ourselves to say No when we want to and know we should. . . . For even when agreements are reached, they are often unstable . . . because the real underlying issues have been avoided or smoothed over, the problem only deferred ” (emphasis added). [1]
Over the years, I have come to some startling revelations on the topic of saying no myself. I used to be a “yes guy.” I used to think that we all really were headed toward a place of agreement, of synthesis. And as often as I am tempted to think about how easy my life would be if I simply went back to this state of contented delirium, I cannot.
I still hope, I still believe, I still dialogue and I definitely still pray. Nothing brings me greater joy than to see harmony and true agreement between those who were formerly on opposite sides of the table. But in my twenty years of involvement with civic issues in America and discourse in the Middle East, I have come to the simple conclusion that, sometimes, no is the only honest, viable, positive answer one can give.
Titling a book is an interesting process. Words and phrases are examined, parsed and evaluated. When I first proposed this title for the book, it immediately raised some red flags. Did I want to send what could be perceived as a negative message? Did I want to risk coming across as divisive, discordant, close-minded? After all, no one was ever elected to political office by using “No, We Can’t” as a campaign slogan! But gradually, the team working on the title came to believe that, indeed, someone needed to stan