“Man's good opinion of himself makes him think it quite possible to win God's favor by his own religious performances; his bad opinion of God makes him unwilling and afraid to put his case wholly into His hands.
The object of the Holy Spirit's work is to alter man's opinion of himself and so to reduce his estimate of his own character that he should think of himself as God does, and so cease to suppose it possible that he can be justified by any excellency of his own. The Spirit then alters his evil opinion of God, so as to make him see that the God with whom he has to do is really the God of all grace.”
~ Horatius Bonar