The Soul's Preparation for Christ

There is another shift which keeps the heart from going to Christ; O faith one, I never had my heart so broken & affected as such a one hath; and therefore they dare not go to Christ, because they have not so much contrition, their hearts so much broken as others have, therefore they dare not go: Ay, but be your souls content to go to Christ and yield to him; would you keep any corruption? is there any sin which you would not have Christ come and remove? The soul answereth, that they would be content to resign all to the Lord Jesus Christ, but they are not so humbled as others are: I say the ground of this complaint is nothing else but self-confidence in broken heartednesse, for the soul is not content to have so much broken heartednesse as is sufficient to bring a man to Christ, but it would have so much as that it might bring a man to Christ to help him in the work of redemption; they think i• is not enough to have the soul so humbled as to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ, but they would have so much as they would join with Christ in this great work: which is nothing else, but carnal confidence. Therefore the conclusion is this: So far see thy sins, so far ⟨p. 122⟩meditate upon thy sins, and so far labour to have thy heart affected with thy sins, and so far attend unto them, that three things may follow.

There is another shift which keepes the heart from going to Christ; O faith one, I never had my heart so broken & affected as such a one hath; and therefore they dare not goe to Christ, because they have not so much contrition, their hearts so much broken as others have, therefore they dare not goe: Ay, but be your soules content to goe to Christ and yeeld to him; would you keepe any corruption? is there any sinne which you would not have Christ come and remove? The soule answereth, that they would be content to resigne all to the Lord Jesus Christ, but they are not so humbled as others are: I say the ground of this complaint is nothing else but selfe-confidence in broken heartednesse, for the soule is not content to have so much broken heartednesse as is sufficient to bring a man to Christ, but it would have so much as that it might bring a man to Christ to helpe him in the worke of redemption; they thinke i• is not enough to have the soule so hūbled as to submit to the Lord Jesus Christ, but they would have so much as they would joyn with Christ in this great worke: which is nothing else, but carnall confidence. Therefore the conclusion is this: So farre see thy sinnes, so farre