What Train Are You Boarding?

(Holiness Is the Ticket Home)

Introduction: All Aboard

Every station hums with movement.

Tracks stretch out like choices.

Announcements echo: “Train departing in five minutes…”

People are always going somewhere.

Life is just like that.

Every heart is en route—somewhere.

Every choice is a boarding pass.

Every desire is a direction.

Every day brings you closer to a destination.

There’s no standing still in life; even standing still moves you along a track.

Scripture puts it bluntly:

> “Enter through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad and easy to travel is the path that leads to destruction… but narrow is the gate and difficult the way that leads to life.”

— Matthew 7:13–14 (AMP)

So let me ask you, friend:

What train are you boarding?

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1 — WE’VE TURNED HEAVEN INTO A VACATION BROCHURE

When people talk about heaven, listen closely —

you’ll hear a travel commercial, not a testimony.

No stress.

No bills.

No sickness.

No pain.

All true — but incomplete.

Because heaven is not a spa retreat for tired souls.

It’s the home of God’s holiness.

And the joy of heaven is not that pain is gone —

it’s that God is there.

> If heaven had everything you love —

but God were missing —

would you still want to go?

Some want escape but not transformation.

Some want peace but not repentance.

Some want blessing but not the Blesser.

Heaven is not for people who just don’t want hell.

Heaven is for people who want God.

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2 — HEAVEN DOESN’T CHANGE YOU; IT REVEALS YOU

A train only goes in one direction.

You can’t buy a ticket to heaven but keep your heart on the wrong track.

Heaven doesn’t change the heart — it reveals it.

Holiness is not perfection; it’s affection.

It’s what you crave when you’re free.

Hebrews 12:14 (AMP) says:

> “Continually pursue peace with everyone, and the sanctification without which no one will [ever] see the Lord.”

That doesn’t mean we earn heaven.

It means heaven is joy only for those who love what heaven is —

the presence of God.

If God’s presence is not your joy here,

it won’t suddenly become your joy there.

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3 — JESUS IS THE ONLY TRAIN THAT GOES HOME

Picture the station crowded with people.

Some read maps.

Some argue over schedules.

Some proudly say all tracks lead to the same place.

But the sign over the only platform that reaches home says:

> “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

No one comes to the Father except through Me.” — John 14:6 (AMP)

The Gospel Train is not a denomination,

not a membership,

not a performance.

The Conductor is Jesus.

The ticket is grace.

The engine is the cross.

The power is the resurrection.

And the destination is the Father’s heart.

There are no express lines for self-righteousness.

No sleeper cars for indifference.

No round-trip tickets for backsliding.

There’s only one train—and it’s moving.

What train are you boarding?

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4 — WHAT YOU PACK TELLS WHERE YOU’RE GOING

Every traveler decides what to carry.

But there are suitcases heaven won’t allow:

Pride

Bitterness

Lust

Greed

Self-rule

Unforgiveness

Grace doesn’t rip them from your hands —

grace changes what you love so much that you’re glad to leave them behind.

Holiness isn’t a burden; it’s baggage drop-off.

It’s God saying:

> “That can’t go where I’m taking you.”

“You won’t need that weight in glory.”

And the longer you walk with Him, the lighter you travel.

Holiness isn’t heaviness—it’s freedom.

It’s what it feels like when your soul finally breathes without sin choking it.

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5 — THE TRAGEDY OF ALMOST

Some people love being near the train:

They love the music of worship.

They enjoy the community of believers.

They nod at the stories of Jesus.

They clap when others board.

But they never get on.

They say:

> “I’ll ride someday. After I settle down. After I fix a few things. After life slows down.”

But “someday” is Satan’s favorite word.

And “almost” is one of hell’s saddest songs.

Hell is filled with almost passengers.

Close enough to smell the smoke,

close enough to hear the whistle,

but never stepping aboard.

What train are you boarding?

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6 — THE FINAL CALL

The Conductor is calling now.

Revelation 22:17 (AMP):

> “The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ …

Whoever wishes, let him take the water of life without cost.”

You don’t need to buy a ticket.

You just need to say yes.

Grace has paid your fare in full.

Holiness is the atmosphere of your new destination.

And the Holy Spirit is whispering right now:

> “Don’t stand there admiring the train — step inside.”

The doors are open.

The engine is warm.