No Contribution Possible

Justification takes place by grace through faith—not because of any good qualities inherent in faith.  In justification, it is not the person's faith that is taken into consideration, but the fact that Jesus Christ has redeemed the entire world.  Justification is based on the fact that Jesus has already done what was necessary as has suffered all that mankind ought to have done and suffered, and that people merely have to accept this.  Therefore, the way to salvation is this: We contribute nothing—absolutely nothing—toward our salvation.  Rather, Christ has already done everything for us, and we must merely cling to what he has done, drawing consolation from His finished work of redemption and trusting in it for our salvation.

C.F.W. Walther, Law and Gospel: How to Read and Apply the Bible,
(trans. Christian C. Tiews; St Louis: Concordia, 2010), 244