A Lifelong Reformation
If there’s one thing we can all agree on, it’s this: the local church is made up of imperfect people. You don’t have to look far to see that we are all still works in progress. But what does that mean for the sanctification of the church?
Far too often, we expect our local church to be fully mature, fully refined, and fully sanctified—as if the work is already complete. But Scripture paints a different picture. Just as individual believers are being sanctified day by day, the church as a whole is going through the same process.
Sanctification is not instantaneous—it’s a lifelong process that requires patience, endurance, and grace.
Sanctification Is a Corporate and Individual Work
When we talk about sanctification, we often focus on the individual aspect—our personal growth in holiness, being conformed to the image of Christ. But sanctification isn’t just about you—it’s about us.
Paul makes this clear in Ephesians 4:15-16:
“Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.”
The church grows as each member grows.
- The sanctification of the church is directly tied to the sanctification of its people.
- If you are growing in holiness, you are helping your church grow in holiness.
- If you are stagnant, you hinder the maturity of the body.
This means you matter in the life of your church. Your growth, your commitment to truth, and your pursuit of Christ contribute to the greater health of the body.
Always Reforming: A Church That Never Stops Growing
The Latin phrase Semper Reformanda means “always reforming.” This phrase isn’t about changing for the sake of change—it’s about the continual pursuit of sanctification in truth.
We must remember:
- There is no perfect church because there are no perfect Christians.
- Every church is being sanctified just as every believer is.
- This process never stops—we never “arrive.”
Romans 12:2 reminds us of this continual transformation:
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
Both the individual believer and the corporate church must be constantly renewing their minds, being sanctified in truth, and growing in holiness.
This means that every sermon preached, every Bible study attended, every act of discipleship is part of a much larger, ongoing work.
We don’t reform once—we keep reforming.
We don’t get sanctified instantly—we keep growing in sanctification.
Patience and Grace: Growing Together in Holiness
If sanctification is lifelong, we must be patient with one another in the process.
The reality is that:
- Some people grow quickly; others take longer.
- Some overcome sin rapidly; others wrestle for years.
- Some grasp deep truths fast; others take time to mature.
If we understand that sanctification is a long road, we won’t rush the process or lose patience with our brothers and sisters.
Paul reminds us in Colossians 3:12-13:
“Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive.”
The local church is not a display case for perfect Christians—it is a workshop of grace, where believers struggle, repent, grow, and push forward together.
We must be willing to extend grace to one another—understanding that we are all in different stages of maturity.
So, What Is Your Role?
If sanctification is both personal and corporate, then each of us has a role to play in the growth of our church.
- Commit to your own sanctification.
- Be in the Word daily (John 17:17).
- Seek accountability and discipleship (Proverbs 27:17).
- Pursue holiness in every area of life (1 Peter 1:15-16).
- Be patient with others in their sanctification.
- Offer grace as others grow (Colossians 3:12-13).
- Don’t expect instant maturity—God works in His timing.
- Encourage, don’t condemn.
- Pray for your church’s sanctification.
- Ask God to sanctify the leaders (Hebrews 13:17).
- Pray for unity and maturity in the body (Ephesians 4:13).
- Pray that the church would remain faithful to the truth.
A Church That Never Stops Growing
A sanctified church is not a perfect church—it’s a growing church.
A healthy church is not a sinless church—it’s a repentant church.
If we want to see true sanctification in our churches, it starts with us.
Are we seeking holiness?
Are we renewing our minds daily?
Are we patient with one another as we grow together?
The work of sanctification never ends—not for us, and not for the church.
Semper Reformanda—always reforming. Always being sanctified in truth. Always pressing forward in holiness.
May we be a church that never stops growing.