Covenant and commandment

The heirs of the Protestant Reformation have emphasized salvation by grace in general and sola fide ('by faith alone') in particular. It was important for the church to recover the central biblical truth that we are justified by God, that this is an act of God's grace, and that faith -- apart from works -- is the means by which we are justified. A related issue is the nature of works or obedience or faithfulness in the Christian life. While evangelicals can generally agree that a person enters into a covenant relationship with God by grace (even solely by grace) apart from works, there is…