How Do We Reveal God and How Do We Be Eternally Happy?

There are only two ultimate concerns in life. One is how to display God in our lives. The other is how to be happy in God forever.

The key verse in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans is found in Romans 1:16 – For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes.

Romans 1:16, 17 – Paul’s Thesis

In the first chapter of Romans, verses 16 and 17 Paul introduces his “thesis statement.” Paul knows that the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ, has inherent power. When we present the gospel effectively, we do not give it power, we only stop hindering the power of the gospel.

The gospel is certainly news, but it is more than information; it has an inherent power to lift people

Despite all their power, the Romans, like all men, were powerless to make themselves righteous before God. The gospel’s power to salvation comes to everyone who believes and believing is the only requirement.

In August of 1513, Martin Luther was born again, and he grasped the truth that the righteousness of God is that righteousness whereby, through grace and sheer mercy, God justifies us by faith.

In May of 1738, John Wesley was saved while learning about Luther’s commentary on the change which God works in the heart through faith in Christ. Beginning as a movement within the Church of England, Methodism expanded over the years between 1738 and 1790 under the leadership of John and Charles Wesley.

2 Ultimate Concerns

There are only two ultimate concerns in life. One is how to display God in our lives. The other is how to be happy in God forever.

What seems great and all-important now may, in fact, be very small. But whether God is shown and known, and whether you will have eternal joy, these are truly great and ultimate concerns. Pray earnestly that God will open your eyes and give you a passion for the gospel which is the power of God to save believers, and for the revealing of God’s righteousness which is the way the gospel brings believers to eternal life and joy.

And what must we think and feel and do to be fully happy in God for all eternity? Romans 1:16–17 deals with these great concerns — as does the whole book.

The power of God for salvation means, at least, the power of God to make us happy in him forever.

Paul declares boldly why he is not ashamed of the gospel about Jesus that he preaches around the world. This message is nothing less than the power of God for everyone who believes, both Jews and Gentiles. It is about being declared righteous by God because of our faith in Him.

In the main message of Romans 1:16 Paul says having faith in Jesus Christ means relying completely on Him. Faith is much more than passive belief. You express your faith through action—by the way you live.

God has revealed His righteousness and faithfulness in the gospel because in the gospel people have the salvation and reconciliation that had been promised from the beginning. God’s righteousness is revealed from faith to faith in that God has been faithful to his word (the first “faith” in the sentence).

Thus, the Apostle Paul taught us to be bold in out testimony of the Gospel.

Verse 17 is about the revelation of the righteousness of God in the gospel. So, this verse deals with our first great concern: how to display God in our lives. The gospel has power to save us because it reveals something of God. And that’s what the first great concern in the universe is: the revealing or showing of God.

In Romans 1:17 the “just,” or righteous man is, not everyone who thinks himself, or is thought by others to be so; nor are any so by their obedience to the law of works. But he is one that is made righteous by the righteousness of Christ imputed to him.

God’s righteousness affects His decisions. His righteousness is perfect, so anyone who relates to Him must do so on a perfect basis; He will never abuse standards for Himself. We do not have perfect righteousness in ourselves; God must give us that righteousness. God always bases His justice on His own righteousness.

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In conclusion, consider the Daily Bread email message sent on 1/12/2005, 8/8/2008, and 6/30/2023 says,

  “It is written” in Habakkuk 2:4. This is Paul’s tag phrase for the whole reality of God’s acting in justice, faithfulness, and love to bestow “the gift of righteousness” (pardon and acceptance) in all who put their faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 1:17; 3:21-26; 5:17; 10:3-4). God reveals this righteousness in the Gospel, and the Good News is that through faith in Christ, we receive the promised hopes, the new life, and the power for Christian behavior that the Gospel set forth. The theme that Paul’s epistle to the Romans expounds is that those who have received the gift of righteousness from God will live, enjoying the reconciled relationship. That relationship with God starts with justification and leads to final salvation called “eternal life”.

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References:

1. Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House Company, 1985), pg. 198.