Do we work for eternal life or is it a gift?

Natural life itself is a free-gift given to us by God. We did not merit, nor earn it, nor did we deserve to be born into the natural world, but we were created by God’s choice. Spiritual life is also a gift of God's grace freely given to those who believe in Jesus. Now one of the ways we can tell the difference between a corpse and an individual that is alive is through the motion and workings of the body. Where there is human life there is movement, at the very least we will detect a heartbeat. Therefore, those who are spiritually alive (born again) have received from God a new heart with new affections whose strongest inclination is to love God and ones neighbor. This new hearts motion and bent leans towards a life of good works that desires to be pleasing to the Father who has adopted us. The Christian does not do good works to obtain eternal-life, but because we already possess eternal-life we do good works. The same principle applies to natural life, people work and move not to obtain life, but they do so because they already possess the gift of life. These distinctions are important to point out when discussing the subject of good works and how they relate to us as Christians. Bing good is not the way that a Christian obtains salvation (adoption into God's family).For a Christian Works are a sign of life a confirmation that we have already received forgiveness, and new life in Christ. The major difference between Christianity and other religions is, other religions require that you have to rescue yourself through obtaining more good works in this life than bad, and then you will receive the favor of God and paradise. But Christianity declares that you and I are totally helpless to rescue ourselves through our good deeds. therefore God sent His son from heaven to earth on a rescue mission to save those who are hopelessly lost and cannot save themselves. John 6:23 For the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.