This Train is Bound for Glory

The last stop in this life can be glory if we only believe.

2 Thessalonians 2:14 “He called you to salvation when we told you the Good News; now you can share in the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

We have been doing Vacation Bible School here at church this week. We have hundreds of people running around playing games, learning bible verses, eating snacks, making crafts, singing songs, learning about Jesus, and doing it all while immersed in a railroad theme. We have been using railroad terminology, dressing up like brakemen, engineers, conductors, and we even have a few old railroad hands helping to run the show.

It has been a great time. Everyone has worked extremely hard to pull off a fantastic week. Even though we have been talking about the railroad, we have really been tying everything in to learning about Jesus.

I would love to say that everyone, young and old alike, are excited to know Jesus, but the truth is, many of us suffer from tunnel vision. We see nothing to the left or to the right. We see only what is ahead of us. We can only see this world. We do not even think about what is to come. We do not see around the bend. We do not see the problem of sin. We do not think about God. We just live our lives as though it is without end, and we never consider our final days. We never think about the eternity that follows our days on earth. That’s right, there is eternity after our final day.

But whether we admit it or not, we all come to the end of the line. Some have just started their journey and the end of the line seems extremely far away. Some of us are older and we know the time is growing near. But really, we have no idea where the end of the line is. Sometimes we get a warning. We are told we have an illness, or we find ourselves in a life-and-death situation. But sometimes the end of the line comes totally unexpected. We are taken by surprise.

Death can hit you like a freight train. If you are not prepared for the end of the line, you can be overwhelmed. You find yourself frantically searching for answers. But if you have given death and what is beyond a bit of thought, you may actually be at peace with the end of life. You are expecting what is to come next. You may even be excited about it. You can see the light at the end of the tunnel.

You see, a train is not a destination, but transportation to the next depot. And there are only two final destinations. Heaven or Hell. There are no other trains to take you to the other depot should you have chosen poorly.

There are plenty of people who will give their opinion as to what is coming after death. Some will say that all routes lead to heaven. They say that all religions agree, but that simply is not true. They are blowing smoke. Judaism does not agree with Islam. Buddhism does not agree with Hinduism. Christianity does not agree with new age religions, Satanism, or atheism. In fact, Christianity says there is only one way. Jesus. And you never get a second chance. No one comes to hell to tell you the truth. No one gives you a free pass. You are not able to backtrack and get on a different route. Jesus is the only way.

Some will tell you that you must work hard to go to heaven. The problem here is that God is perfect, and anything less than perfection will not measure up! Only perfection can join perfection. So, how can we be perfect? We can’t. But we can be forgiven and when we are forgiven, we become perfect in God’s eyes.

Jesus is the ticket you need to get to heaven. Works for redemption, all other religions, being good, love for family, humanitarian efforts and anything else are simply invalid tickets handed out by Satan. They seem free but require a tremendous price at the end. They may be good things in and of themselves, but they are not the ticket to heaven.

So, we are on a railroad. We are speeding along. We are all headed for a destination. The question is, do you know if you are on the right track? We often recognize the truth when we hear it. We know there is only one way to heaven. We see Jesus for who He truly is. We find ourselves on the right track. Still, others have no clue. They never seem to be able to see the truth and end up living their life in rejection of Jesus.

To make it simple, we are marred by sin (Romans 3:23), and we cannot fix it (Romans 6:23). God gave His son to die for our sins (Romans 5:8). He arose from the dead to defeat death (Romans 10:9). He now waits for us in Heaven. All we must do is believe in Jesus and accept Him as Lord and Savior and proclaim Him to gain the gift of eternal life (Romans 10:10). This sounds easy, but it requires a track change. We cannot continue in the same direction doing the same things. We change. This is what the Holy Spirit does. He changes us. He puts us on the right track. He conducts our new journey.

We had 25 children accept Jesus so far this week and the week is not over. They have switched tracks and are now on a route toward Heaven. I thank God for their salvation and I pray He will use them, and us, in a mighty way!

Which track are you on? The one to heaven or the one to hell. It is not too late to change tracks yet, but we never know when the end of the line is near. I love one of the songs we sang in VBS. The lyrics and the song are pretty simple, but the message is clear. This train is bound for glory, this train. This train is bound for glory, this train. This train is bound for glory. Jesus made a place in Heaven for me. This train is bound for glory, this train. Which train are you on? I hope and pray it is this train!