Grace
God giving rather than you earning.
A little more
Grace is the idea that God’s love and forgiveness are freely given, not something you earn by being good enough. It runs against a very natural human instinct that we need to deserve good things.
This doesn’t mean Christians think behaviour is irrelevant — good actions matter deeply. But grace insists they come as a grateful response to what God has already given, rather than as a way of purchasing his approval.
Grace is central to how most Christian traditions understand salvation, even where they differ on the exact relationship between grace, faith and good works (see justification).
Read it for yourself
- Ephesians 2:8-9Paul’s summary: salvation by grace through faith, not by earning it.