Protestant here. I agree that we are talking past each other with regards to Salvation due to differences in terminology. Protestants generally call the event of being saved by faith "salvation" while the following process of conforming yourself to the image of God is "sanctification." I prefer this terminology myself because it lets you answer questions of salvation with a simply yes or no. Further growth is just called something else.
In terms of purgatory, we just don't think of heaven in that way (as much as all Protestants have a unified theological outlook). We tend to think of heaven as a place where we will be made new by God in body and spirit. The old sinful ways will pass or be burned away in an instant (as John said). Further growth will still happen there, but it won't be required to enter the divine presence. Also and frankly, unless entering heaven is a fully transformative process, I can't see how the process of gradually sanctifying yourself in purgatory would work. It seems like you would be moving down a line asymptotically approaching perfection, you will never quite get there.
Protestant here. I agree that we are talking past each other with regards to Salvation due to differences in terminology. Protestants generally call the event of being saved by faith "salvation" while the following process of conforming yourself to the image of God is "sanctification." I prefer this terminology myself because it lets you answer questions of salvation with a simply yes or no. Further growth is just called something else.
In terms of purgatory, we just don't think of heaven in that way (as much as all Protestants have a unified theological outlook). We tend to think of heaven as a place where we will be made new by God in body and spirit. The old sinful ways will pass or be burned away in an instant (as John said). Further growth will still happen there, but it won't be required to enter the divine presence. Also and frankly, unless entering heaven is a fully transformative process, I can't see how the process of gradually sanctifying yourself in purgatory would work. It seems like you would be moving down a line asymptotically approaching perfection, you will never quite get there.