Why can't our works earn us merit before God?

Ephesians 2:8-9 highlights that salvation is by grace through faith, not of works, lest anyone boast. This reinforces the Reformed understanding that our works, while important, are never the basis for our standing before God. God commands obedience and service from His people, but we must recognize that these acts flow from a heart changed by grace. Our right relationship with God is established solely through Christ's righteousness, and our works are a result of that transformed state rather than a means of achieving merit before Him.