-March 10, 2024-
Good morning beloved, happy Lord’s Day
“Now when Jesus saw that he answered wisely, He said, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ But after that no one dared question Him.”
(Mark 12:34).
We have all known people who are close to salvation, but not yet saved. This was the case of the scribe who asked Jesus, “Which is the first commandment of all?” Jesus answered, ‘The first of all the commandments is: Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one. And you shall love the Lord your God all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. And the second, like it, is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” It wasn’t saying by keeping these two commandments one will be saved. In fact, Jesus was exposing our inability to even keep these perfectly.
This scribe understood it; he got it. He responded wisely that love for God and one’s neighbor was more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices. Jesus therefore tells him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” Close, isn’t good enough in the matter of salvation, you must receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
We don’t know anything more about this scribe after his talk with Jesus. We wonder, did he get saved later? Jesus’ words may have got him thinking. There are others in the NT who were also close, but didn’t get saved.
After hearing Paul, Felix the governor said, “Go away for now; when I have a convenient time I will call for you” (Acts 24:25b). The devil tries to make it inconvenient for people to come to Christ. King Agrippa seemed close too, he told Paul in Acts 26:28, “You almost persuade me to become a Christian.” Close is not enough, almost is not good enough. Even the rich young ruler was close, but then went away sad because he had so many possessions he was unwilling to give. He put them ahead of Jesus.
Let us rejoice in the grace of God and thank the Lord for saving us. We are in the kingdom, in Jesus Christ our Lord. Have a blessed Lord’s Day. Stay safe and healthy.
Pray for those who are close to the kingdom that they enter the kingdom,
Dean
Dean Allen's Daily Devotional 