Faith and Works

"Our differences lie in that our Protestant friends - at least many of them - seem to make a sharp distinction between justification and sanctification. So they apply the idea of salvation to justification. So, you are justified by grace through faith, then follows sanctification through works. We, as Orthodox, would agree with this - justification by faith - but we would insist that there is also future judgment by works. In other words: of course, salvation is by grace. The essential connection to Christ - what God offers through Christ - is by faith. We have no [meritorious] works. We are sinners. But once we connect with Christ, we have the challenge of living in Christ and doing works of mercy, and so on, and so forth, our whole life. And at the end, we are judged, as scripture says that we are. You have, for example, 2 Corinthians 5:10:

...we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ. That each one may receive good or evil according to what he has done in the body."

We are saved by grace, through faith, to do good works

For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so that no one can boast. For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them. - Eph 2:8-10

See Also

• Justification
• Salvation