Good Enough for?

Since Nobody's Perfect.... 
How Good is Good Enough?


By Andy Stanley


As a pastor, I talk to people.  Two questions seem to pop up in my discussions with them: 1. Don't all religions worship the same God?  2.  Don't good people go to heaven?  Andy Stanley sets out to answer the second question (and subtly answers the first) in this book Since Nobody's Perfect... How Good is Good Enough?


In this short book (90 pages) Andy Stanley tries to ask poignant questions about a common misconception.  If you look at most of the religions of the world you realize that there is a common thread holding them all together.  All religions seem to base their core beliefs on whether someone does the right things or not, all religions except one of course.  Doesn't matter if you look at Islam, Mormonism, Buddhism, or Hinduism their basic premise is focused on doing certain things or enough things to appease god(s).  So according to these leading religions if you're good enough you could make it to heaven, nirvana, the next level or where ever else is the ultimate goal.  Christianity is different.  It isn't necessarily about what you do, it's about your acceptance of what Christ did on the cross. According to Christianity good people and bad people will be in heaven, and good people and bad people will be in hell simply based on their decision about Christ, which the author suggests is really the fairest way of all.


Likes:  This book is super short, 90 pages, so that anyone could spend an hour and read the entire thing.  I also like that it not only answers the question of 'How good is good enough' but also focuses the reader on the gospel of Christ, making sure to present the gospel by the end of the book.  Lastly I liked how the question of goodness and fairness were handled, making sure to try and deconstruct those beliefs through logical dialogue.


Dislike:  Since it is short this book is overly simplistic.  Unfortunately I think people from the religions discussed (Mormonism, Islam, etc.) could be repulsed at the simplicity described of their beliefs, even if they were represented correctly.  Also because of its' simplicity, the gospel loses some of its' life changing attributes, and seems just like a prayer that is spoken rather than a life changing decision.


Overall though I think I would recommend this book, especially for churches that want to use it as a giveaway for visitors in the church, but with one stipulation:  Make sure this book leads to relational conversation rather than individual consumption.  What I mean is give it to someone to read and follow up with them on it.  The simplicity is perfect for people unfamiliar with the gospel, but make sure they don't have to sort through it on their own, walk through the gospel with people, isn't that what Jesus did?


4 out of 5 stars.


I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.