Book Review: How Good is Good Enough?

So my last blog was a book review on the topic of Hell.  This time I chose a book viewing life-after-death from the other side, Heaven.  So here is my review of Andy Stanley’s take on what it takes to get to heaven titled How Good is Good Enough?

In his book How Good is Good Enough, Andy Stanley discusses a popular view of what it takes for people to get into heaven, being good enough.  Throughout this small book he considers the pros and cons of the good enough theory. It is throughout his discussion that the reader learns of many of the holes in this extremely popular theory on what it takes to get to heaven. 

Here is a small taste of Stanley’s recap of problems that arise in the good people go to heaven theory: from page 61

• We don’t know exactly what good is. Even our religious leaders can’t agree on the subject. 
• We have no clear indication from God how the scoring system for good deeds works. 
• We can’t use the Bible as a gauge to measure how close we are to getting in.  The Bible doesn’t claim to offer a way to heaven through good works.  Besides, the catalog of good works listen in the Old Testament is culturally irrelevant and physically impossible to keep.

After logically and theologically debunking many of the good enough myth, Stanley offers a great discuss on the relevance of fairness vs. truth.  In this he describes that just because something is true does not make it fair.  Many people find this to be the case when discovering Christianity.  Yes, it is exclusive.  That may not seem to be fair to us, but that doesn’t make it untrue.  Stanley suggests that after reading this book, if one still has reservations, to continue to investigate Christianity.  

I would definitely recommend this book if you are unsure of what it takes to get to heaven or if you just want to explore a different route give it a shot.  

I received a free copy of Andy Stanley’s book How Good is Good Enough? from Waterbrook Multnomah Publishers to review. If you would like a copy of this book I suggest buying it from Amazon.com here.