even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

Ephesians 2: 5-7

In a study of any world religion concerning the topic of salvation, Christianity stands alone. In other religions, the path is inevitably paved with some type of good works, but one of the pillars of Christianity is that salvation is available by grace alone.

God’s grace is perhaps best communicated in Paul’s next verses to the Ephesians: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2: 8,9 ESV)

So then if salvation is by God’s grace through faith in Christ, does the doctrine Sola gratia negate the importance of works in the lives of followers of Christ? The answer to this question is found in the verse immediately following the passage listed above. “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 ESV)

Scripture makes it clear, then, that each of us is expected to walk following the commands of Christ in our daily lives. No serious follower would answer that a Christian should live an immoral life or one that fails to care for the needs of others. If this is the case isn’t Christianity just as dependent on works as other religions?

The key difference is one of motivation. All other religions follow a path that demands adherence to some type of rule to gain access to their concept of God. Instead, the Christian responds out of an attitude of gratitude to “walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” (Colossians 1: 10 ESV)