Is our calling and salvation based on our own works?
No. Scripture says God saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works. Salvation and calling rest on His sovereign purpose and will, according to Ephesians 1:11, being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after His own counsel.
Les explains that the only way to reconcile these things is to hold on to the sovereignty of God: everything began with Him, and everything remains in His control. In Ephesians 1:11, believers have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated—the same as elected or called—according to the purpose of Him who worketh all things after His own will. Then in II Timothy 1:7-9, God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound mind; He saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works. We didn’t deserve it.
Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,
More Questions
Does God save us because of our own effort or will?
Salvation and God's acceptance are not attained by our own sweating, running, or willing; they are not earned by human effort.