ness.

But "just men made perfect" also form apart of the society above.
Their number is daily increasing. Day by day unbroken columns are
passing through the golden gates of the city, and God's elect are
gathering from the four winds of heaven. There are no dead saints; all
are alive unto God, and "we live together with them."

But I further remark in reference to all this glorious society, that
there shall be _perfect union_ among its members. That union will not
be one of sameness; for there can be no sameness either in the past
history, or in the intellectual capacity of any of its members. How
vast must be the difference for ever between the history of Gabriel,
the thief on the cross, the apostle Paul, and the child who died on
its first birthday! There is, moreover, every reason to believe that
each person must retain his own individual features of mind and
peculiarities of character, there as well as here. All the stars will
shine in brilliancy, and sweep in orbits more or less wide around the
great centre, but "each star differeth from another star in glory."
Yet this want of sameness is what will produce the deepest harmony,
such as one sees in the blending of different colours, or hears in
the mingling of different notes. And I repeat it, the bond of this
perfectness must be the same in heaven as on earth--love. For it is
love which unites exalted rank to lowly place, knowledge to ignorance,
and strength to weakness; thus bringing things opposite into an
harmonious whole. See accordingly how the love which dwelt in "God
manifest in the flesh," poured itself into the lowest depths of
humanity, and met men far down to lift them high up; so that at the
very moment, for instance, when Jesus was intensely conscious of His
dignity, "knowing that he came from God and went to God," He even then
shewed how inseparable was true love from true grandeur, for we read
that "knowing" this, "He rose from supper and girded Himself with a
towel, and washed His disciples' feet!" And as Jesus in the might of
the same Divine affection bridged over the gulf which separated man
from Himself and His Father, drawing the impure to Him the Holy One,
that they might become holy; and the ignorant to Him the All-knowing,
that they might become truly wise;--so shall the same Divine love
include within its vast embrace all in heaven, from God seated on the
throne down through the burning ranks of cherubim and seraphim till
it reaches the o