All Aboard

After the Conductor gave the “all aboard,” the Flagman (or sometimes the Conductor) would use a hand signal by day and lantern waving signal by night to give the engineer (the driver of the train) the go ahead.

The engineer was the driver of the train, but he couldn’t move the train without the Conductor’s permission. The train couldn’t move until the Engineer pulled the throttle. The Engineer couldn’t pull the throttle until the brakeman released the brakes. The Brakeman couldn’t release the brakes until he received a signal from the Flagman. The Flagman couldn’t give the signal until the Conductor called, “All Aboard."

The Conductor couldn’t call “All Aboard” until all the passengers were on the train. Maybe this is why the phrase, “What a way to run a railroad!" has been repeated so many times.

As you can see that a series of events had to take place before the train could move. It was fascinating for me to watch the Conductor say “All Aboard” and get on the train. The Engineer would blow the whistle, and get the train ready to move. The train would start out slow, and then would begin to pick up speed and move down the track.

•There were very strict and necessary rules of railroad operation.

•They had to adhere to the strict compliance of these rules.

•The Bible has set forth commandments and rules of life that we must adhere to.

•We are going to spend eternity somewhere, and it is very important that we obey the commandments of the Word of God.

•There is no excuse for us to be ignorant of what is going to happen.

•We have hope in the hereafter.

•Death for a Child of God is only falling asleep in the arms of our Lord.

•1 Thessalonians 4:16 (KJV) “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first.” (KJV)

•1 Thessalonians 4:16 (NIV) “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.”

•There is going to be a series of events that will take place.

•There will be a shout.

•There will be the voice of the archangel.

•There will be a voice of command.

•There will be a sound of the trump of the Lord.

•The trumpet blast will be a signal and a summons for the dead in Christ to rise from the dead, and the children of the Lord that are alive to come up.

•1 Thessalonians 4:17(KJV) “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

•1 Thessalonians 4:17 (NIV) “After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord for ever.”

•All the church, the saints of past ages, and the saints of the last age, shall ascend together to meet the Lord.

•That glorious meeting shall never end.

•The Church of the Living God is getting ready to pull out.

•We are not going on a train, car, boat, or plane.