Works based gospels are pride based gospels

In Christianity, salvation is by grace through faith, not of works. You do not need to work to be saved, and indeed you cannot work to be saved. Think of it as like heart surgery. The patient is usually unconscious, the doctor does 100% of the work. Jesus is pretty much like that. You don't need to do anything, you just need to trust that He can do what you need Him to do, and let Him do it.

Sadly, there are many fake versions of Christianity in the world which preach completely different "gospels". By reinterpreting grace and works, these religions claim that you must do specific things (or even non-specific, some work on a sort of karma system) beyond believing, in order to be saved. Now, the Bible explicitly says in a number of places that there is literally nothing you need to do, and nothing you can do, to be saved. Indeed, Romans 11:6 explicitly defines grace as being contrasted with works. You cannot be saved by grace and works. It is contradictory. But these false gospels have a deeper flaw: Pride.

See, in Christianity, man is worthless, whereas Jesus is worth everything. We can be saved not because we deserve to be, but because Jesus is more than enough. But in any works based "gospel", Jesus is always devalued, and man is always elevated.

In Ephesians 2:8-9, we are told why salvation is not of works, but rather, it is a gift. This is so that no one can boast. But if works are required for salvation, we can definitely boast. "I'm going to Heaven because I deserve it." No you don't! The only thing you contributed to your own salvation is the sin that made it necessary! Christ, and Christ alone, paid the penalty for your sin and provided the righteousness you need to pass through Heaven's gates. On your own merit, you go to Hell. Verses like Matthew 7:21-23 even gives an example of those who boast of the good things they did for Jesus, and He casts them out as practitioners of lawlessness. I like to say that these verses show you can ask Jesus to judge you by your works, but the problem is, He will. The absolute last person you want to rely on to get you into Heaven is yourself.

But Jesus? There is no end to the value of the blood He spilled for you. Every last drop was so precious, it cannot be summed up in numbers. It is estimated that throughout earth's history, only 20 billion people have ever existed. The blood of Christ is precious enough to buy them all. To claim we must work for our own salvation on top of that is to say Jesus isn't precious enough.

Now, make no mistake: Just because works do not contribute to salvation does not mean they are not essential to faith. Grace is not an excuse for lawlessness, but a motive for good works. It is a safety net, not a hammock. But the safety net is there, and when you fall into it, you contribute nothing to its saving power. Christ is enough, you are insignificant. So trust Him, and Him alone. Anything else is pure pride.