The Place of Works in Salvation

Do works play any role in our salvation?  Are works important after one is converted?
As I wrote in my blogpost on Friday (3-21-25) our salvation is by grace, not works.  So are works out of the picture totally for a believer?  Do we just sit in the grace of God without anything further to do?
NO - the call to salvation is a gift of grace.  No one is ever converted until he has responded to the gracious call of Jesus to be saved.  It is through grace provided we are even able to respond.
But this call to salvation is also a call to follow and serve. It is a call to die to self and live totally and freely for Christ.  

"Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14: 25-27) NIV

Here it is...once converted, our entire life becomes our service.  There is no "service" that stands alone from the flow of our life that makes us a Christian.  Our entire life is now our service freely given over to Christ.  

"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship." (Romans 12:1) NIV

Our body incorporates everything we do, go, say, think...well, you get the picture.  Totality of who we are.

I remember hearing Dudley Hall say years ago that everything a believer does that is not sin is counted as righteousness because we stand in the righteousness of Jesus and our whole life is an act of service toward God.

And this is our "worship" which the old King James Version says, "Our reasonable service."  There is no one called to a higher level of service or commitment to Jesus than any other converted person because giving one's all - even to death - is what is required by one and all.

Once converted, we no longer control our life.  We belong to Jesus totally and freely.  So whether we continue as a nurse, a controller, an educator, or become a pastor....everyone who has been converted lives under the same policy - we are not our own.