“That’s our bottom line!” I stood there with my jaw hanging open. Who was this woman? My wife, once so embarrassed that she left a watch shop in Hong Kong while I haggled over a $10 price reduction, was now asking for a $5,000 price drop on a brand-new Audi sedan! Maybe it was because the salesperson was female, but Lynne completed the deal and we left with a new Audi, and my appreciation for her negotiating skills greatly increased!

Sometimes it’s best to just get to the bottom line. It saves a lot of hassle and misunderstanding, doesn’t it? So, how about we get to the bottom line of this journey we call the Christian life? God didn’t make it confusing; men did. God has made the whole thing pretty clear, actually.

First, there is only one way to heaven. “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me’” (John 14:6, ESV). Pretty straightforward.

Now, for those of us who have professed faith in Jesus Christ, we are told this by the Apostle Paul: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20). We were slaves to sin before, but God paid the ransom price to set us free. He set us free to serve an eternal purpose.

Second, Matthew 28:19–20 says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” We call this The Great Commission, but it is in fact our marching orders. It is a command, not a suggestion. A saved Christian is now a disciple who is called to go and make more disciples — also very simple.

Along with the command come the resources to accomplish it. “For it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). This tells us there is implanted within us a desire to serve God as well as the spiritual power to accomplish it. And what is it we are to accomplish? “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). God has an assignment for each and every one of us, ordained from before the foundation of the world.

So, here’s the bottom line: If you are a Christian, you have been given skills for an assignment ordained by God before time began. If you embrace the assignment, you will no doubt have seasons of trial and challenges, but it comes with God’s presence, power, and provision. It is the only path that brings us into a place where we experience Jesus’s promise of “fullness of joy” (John 15:10–11). If you choose to ignore the call of God, taking His grace for granted and thinking you have obtained fire insurance, you may end up in heaven, but your life here on earth won’t be so heavenly.

The bottom line to the bottom line is this: Now that you know about God’s command, He will hold you accountable for how you respond to it. My fervent prayer is that you embrace the call and live a life that exalts our risen Lord!

What say ye, Man of Valor?
Semper Fidelis!