"water upon the thirfty, and floods upon the dry ground." Another cry you should give after him, that is thus crying on you, is, Jer. iii. 22. "Behold, we come unto thee, for thou art the Lord our God :" and with the poor man in the gospel," Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.— O fend forth thy light and thy truth to lead me."

2dly, We come next to addrefs ourfelves to thefe who are more affured their time has been a time of love. I offer thefe four advices following.

[1.] Do not deny or difown the time of love; beware of questioning if ever fuch a time went over you. Do not deny it to your fellow-Chriftians, that you may have it to fay, "Come hither all ye that fear the Lord, and I will tell you what he has done to my foul.” Do not deny it to God, that you may have it to say, O my foul, thou haft faid unto the Lord, Thou art my Lord." And that you may maintain your confidence before him.

[2.] In all time coming, remember the time of love; for it may be very serviceable to you.-In the time of temptation, remember the time of love; wherein God becomes forth-coming, that, with the temptation, he would give a way of efcape.-In the time of tribulation, remember the time of love; when it was fecured that he would be with you in trouble.-In time of defertion, remember the time of love; wherein it was promifed, He would never leave you, nor forfake you.In time of defection and backfliding, remember the time of love; wherein it was fecured, that he would heal your backflidings, and love you freely, and reftore your foul.-In time of want and poverty, remember the time of love; when you was made to believe that your God fhould fupply all your needs, according to his riches in glory, by Chrift Jefus.-In the time of reproach for his fake, remember the time of love; wherein it was infured, that, "If you be reproached for the name of Chrift, happy are ye; for the Spirit of God, and of glory refteth upon you." In time of man's wrath, rage, and perfecuting fury, remember the time of love; wherein it was fecured, that the wrath of man fhould praife him, and that the remainder of his wrath he would reftrain.-In the time of

divine wrath, heavy judgments, and gloomy, terrible difpenfations, remember the time of love; wherein it was promifed, that, though in a little wrath he fhould hide himfelf for a moment, yet with everlafting mercy he would gather thee. See Ifa. liv. 7,8.In a time of fin and corruption prevailing, remember the time of love; wherein you was made to fay," Tho' iniquities prevail, yet, as for our tranfgreffions thou wilt purge them away." In a time of forrow and heaviness, remember the time of love; and then you may be led to fay, "Why art thou caft down, Omy foul? Hope in God, for I fhall yet praise him." In a time of danger, remember the time of love, as did the apofile, 2 Cor. i. 10. "We had the fentence of death in ourselves, that we fhould not truft in ourfelves, but in God which raifeth the dead, who delivered us from fo great a death, and doth deliver; in whom we truft, that he will yet deliver us. He delivered me from the paw of the lion, and mouth of the bear, and will he not deliver from the hand of this uncircumcifed Philiftine?"In a time of diffidence and diftruft, remember the time of love, as a notable means and motive to faith, Lam. iii. 21, 22, 23. "This I recal to mind, therefore have I hope :" This, what is it he recals to mind? even the time of love and mercy that follows: "It is of the Lord's mercy we are not confumed, and becaufe his compaffions fail not: they are new every morning; great is his faithfulnefs."-In a time of darkness, remember the time of love; and then you may fay, "Tho' I fit in darknefs, the Lord will be a light to me: The Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." In a time of deadness, remember the time of love, and fay, Quicken thou me, according to thy word. "In a time of weakness, remember the time of love, and the words of love; "My grace fhall be fufficient for you, and my ftrength fhall be perfected in your weakness."In a time of death, remember the time of love; and in the believing remembrance thereof, you may fay, "Though I walk through the valley of the fhadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me, and thy rod and staff they comfort me.O death, where is thy fting? Ograve, where is thy victory?""

[3.] Has

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[3.] Has ever your time of need been his time of love, then in all future times of need come boldly to the throne of grace, that you may find grace to help in time of need: for, the time of love, in times of need formerly, fecures his loving help in all time of need to come: only observe thefe rules about help in time of need.

1. "That your expectation of things not neceffary or "abfolutely needful, may fail you." You may be in a delufion in your expectation of certain out-gates you would have, and of fenfible comforts at all times; but you fhall never be in a delufion in your expectation of needful help from the throne of grace; for, the matchlefs God of Jefhurun rides in heaven, for the help of his people, and in his excellency on the fky, Deut. xxxiii. 26.

It

2. "That needful help and fupport comes from the "fame throne from which fenfible comforts come." is remarkable, you are called to come boldly to that throne, for these things you may be always fure to find there, namely, Mercy and grace to help in time of need;" you are not affured always of fenfible comforts there; be content of fupport promifed in time of need; and remember, it is no little mercy to get a little help; that the fame love may be read in the meaneft, lowest measure of grace and mercy that is to be read in the greateft; they come from the fames fountain, the fame throne of grace.

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3. That they that get this help may lay their ac"count, notwithstanding, to be kept weak and infirm." Look not for fuch help in this world as shall make you no more poor and needy beggars at the throne of grace: help and affiftance, you know, is for weak and infirm people. Look not for help that will make you better ftored in yourselves than you were before; you muft be kept poor and needy, that the Lord may think upon you, as the Pfalmift fays, Pfalm xl. 17.; and as it is, Dan. xi. 34. you must be content to be holpen with a little help, and kept from crushing, though you be holden in the duft: "Troubled on every fide, yét not diftreffed; perplexed, but not in defpair; perfecuted, but not forsaken; caft down, but not destroyed," 2 Cor. iv, 8, 9. Lay your account, though you get help, that, as it finds you

weak,

weak, fo it will keep you weak in yourfelves, and yet do your turn.

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4. "Help is given to them who have their hand at "a turn." We do not fpeak of helping or affifting fuch as defire and endeavour to do nothing themfelves; fo here, expect not help but in God's way, and about his hand, and his throne; aiming at duty, though you are not able to go through it: when thy heart is overwhelmed, and yet thou art crying, when thou art finking, it is in that posture, needful help uses to be given, Pfalm lxi. 1, 2.

5. "That help comes not, and is not to be expected, "till a time of need, and preffing need; fuch as puts you to cry under the preffure of the need; as I faid "before, the word in the original fignifies, to turn at "a cry, as God promifes to do, Ifa. xxx. 19." People would be content of help if they could get it befide them, always at hand; but, fays the apoftle, a time of need fhall come, and help in a time of need; "In due time you fhall reap if you faint not." This may be a cure to all anxiety about what fhall happen hereafter, or what may be before us. We have no ftrength to grapple with fuch unforeseen difficulties; why, but let us remember we are to be bufy at the prefent work of the day, and leave the next day to God, who gives help in time of need: as Christ says in another cafe, Matth. vi. 34. "Take no thought for to-morrow, for the morrow fhall take thought for the things of itfelf; fufficient for the day is the evil thereof." What have we to do with help till it be needed? To what purpofe is it to have Jordan running dry, till the priefls feet be fet in the water? To what purpofe is it to know wherewith we fhall ferve the Lord, till we come thither? And then it fhall be given in the hour it is needed, as Christ says, of speaking to enemies, much more in fpeaking to our best friend. This may affure us alfo, that we cannot expect help till we cry, as David, "Out of the depths have I cried to thee." We are many times in distress murmuring and not crying; we need help, but are not feeking help: God is an obferving God as well as a hearing God; he would have us cry when he requires us.

6. " Though

6. ་ Though fecret fupport may be given to them "that cry under their need, yet fatisfying help may be delayed for a time." And there are feveral caufes of this delay; fome relative to ourselves, and some relative to the church, or the public.

(1.) Some caufes relative to ourfelves. The Lord will not always help when we are preffed under the need of help, that puts us to cry, until the trial comes to the utmost extremity; Deut. xxxii. 26. "He will judge his people, and he will repent himfelf for his fervants, when he fees that there is none fhut up or left." As long as we have any thing, that looks like doing our own turn without him, he will ly by, Pfal. xciv. 16. It is not till the Pfalmift faid, "My foot flippeth," and I am juft falling over, that needful help comes; but then, Thy mercy, O Lord, held me up." Thus with Abraham in the matter of offering up his fon Ifaac, Genefis xxii. 10, II. The Lord is not feen in the mount, till the knife is at the throat of Ifaac. This is the Lord's way, not to come just when we are really preffed, and hard put to it; as long as there is a ftep further for the diffi culty to go, he may let the trial go on before he comes with help, that we may be humbled under the preffures, under the guilt that drew them on; and that we may be put in a capacity of efteeming it a great mercy, when we are thus helped with a little help.

(2.) Relative to the public. The Lord fufpends many a time, at leaft, the comfortable help of particular faints, till he bring up the public intereft with it: and it is not unfuitable to fee the children in diftrefs, while the mother is wearing a mourning weed. Defertions are not readily the lefs frequent among faints, that God covers himself in a cloud in his anger from Zion: but there is a bleffed time of relief coming, as you may read, Pfal. cii. 20, 21, 22. and ver. 16, 17. When the Lord appears in his glory to build up Zion, then he will hear the prayer of the deftitute, and the groaning of the prifoners. As we ufe to fay, when a thaw comes after a great frost, or rain after a great drought, it loofes many prifoners: fo when a fhower of the divine influences

come