The Reformers said that it is truly sin and would merit damnation except that God does no longer impute this remaining sin to the believer. The greatest difference between the two streams of thought is not in areas of specific points of soteriology, but in the matter of overall emphasis. This fact is often overlooked. Therefore it is entirely possible to subscribe to a Protestant creed in the formal sense, but be Catholic in overall spirituality - or vice versa. In the case of Rome, the great emphasis always falls on the work of sanctifying grace within man.
Roman ism is therefore subjective, experience oriented and man-centered.
In the case of true Protestantism, sanctification is not denied, but its central affirmation always remains God's work for us in Christ. Protestantism is therefore objective in its emphasis, gospel oriented and Christ-centered. We should bear this principle in mind when we seek to evaluate the current religious scene, which makes the inward experience of the believer the supreme concern and central point of Christian witness.