Almost...

"Jesus, seeing that [the scribe] answered intelligently, said to him : You are not far from the kingdom of God." Mark 12:34 (read v. 28-34)

When the Lord was on the earth, Pharisees, chief priests, scribes, elders and Herodians tried to test him : they challenged his authority, they sought to trap him in his words. However all were confused. Thus, at the end of the episode indicated, a scribe comes to question Jesus.

He heard Jesus talking with Sadducees about an unlikely family problem. He noticed how well Jesus responded to them. Convinced of the truth of Jesus' response and the wisdom of his judgment ("So you are in great error," said Jesus), this scribe asks him : "What is the first of all the commandments ?" The Lord knows what is going on in this man's mind. He discerned his honesty. He does not try to test it in his turn, but responds by simply quoting the Word. And this Word corresponds to the convictions of the scribe, as evidenced by his commentary on the two verses that the Lord quotes: to love God and his neighbor "is more than all burnt offerings and sacrifices". Faced with this understanding of God's thought, the Lord's appreciation is immediate : "You are not far from the kingdom of God".

"Not far away" ! What do these words mean in the mouth of the Lord ? Not quite ? Not yet ? Almost ? Probably all three at once. But one can also discern as an encouragement : You have understood that "love is the whole of the Law" (Rom 13:10); that, without love, the observance of the Law is only ritual. That's good, but not enough; now, go to the end ... it remains for you to love the one who alone can open you to the entrance of the kingdom, and obey him.

Will the scribe have done it ? We do not know anything about it ; but it is perhaps to some of us, or to our relatives, that this "not far" is addressed ! Very close by the knowledge of God's thoughts on salvation, we can however remain excluded, if we do not confess Jesus as his personal Savior. There will be in the sky no "almost saved", no "almost child of God," but only children of God saved "by grace ... by means of faith" (Eph 2: 8) !

Source (Pleasing the Lord)