Rediscovering the

Eight-lane
Highway
to Heaven
 THE
BEATITUDES

Matt. 5: 3-10
 What could be the significance
of the words of blessedness
with which Christ chose to
begin His first-recorded speech
of His public ministry?

John 8: 32
& Hosea 4: 6
 How could those maiden words of
Christ be meaningful to everyone,
seeing that the crowd might have
been made of poor and rich, literate
and illiterate, youth and elderly,
sinners and saints, Jews and
Gentiles?
Matt. 4: 25—
5: 1-2
 What could be the significance
of speaking of a would-be
Highway to Heaven when the
Bible strongly recommends the
Narrow Way?

2 Tim. 4: 3
vs. Matt. 7: 13
 What difference could there be
between the highway to heaven
(Narrow Way) and the highway
to hell (Broad Way)?
The highway to Heaven is led by the Spirit;
the highway to hell is led by the flesh.

Gal. 6: 8
& Prov. 14: 12
Matt. 5 “Blessed are the poor in
spirit, for theirs is the
vv.3&4 kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who
mourn, for they will be
comforted.
 Blessed are the meek, for
they will inherit the earth.
vv.5&6 Blessed are those who
hunger and thirst for
righteousness, for they will
be filled.
 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown
vv.7&8 mercy.
Blessed are the pure in
heart, for they will see
God.
 Blessed are the
v. 9 peacemakers, for they
will be called children of
God.
 Blessed are those who are
persecuted because of
v. 10
righteousness, for theirs is
the kingdom of heaven.
The Poor in
spirit: This implies those who
depend on God for all the
needs of life. Therefore, God
Ps. 121 will have by Himself (i.e., in
His Kingdom) the poor in
heart in order to satisfy them.
The
Mourners: This implies those who are
weeping due to trials and for the
sin-sick souls. Therefore, God will
Acts 9: give them the joy of participating
15-16 in working out their own salvation
and the salvation of dying souls.
The Meek: This implies those who are
humble, submissive,
teachable, corrigible,
Phil. 2:
changeable. Therefore, God
3-11
will elevate and prosper them
in this world and the world to
come.
The Hungry &
thirsty for This implies those who are
righteousness: hunting and craving for the
restoration of God’s image
in their lives. Therefore, God
Phil. will feel them throguh the in-
3: 7-12 dwelling of the Holy Spirit.
The This implies those who hate
Merciful: sin but love the sinner, and
are always ready to pardon
their offenders. Therefore,
Col. 3: 13 God will forgive and pardon
all their confessed and
abandoned evil.
The Pure This implies those who are
in heart: striving daily to think of
whatever things are lovely, of
good report, praiseworthy.
Phil. 4: 8 Therefore, God will reward
their pure thoughts with
beholding His glory, face to
face.
The
Peacemakers: This implies those who
strive daily to promote
peace in words, actions, and
Rom. behavior. Therefore, God
14: 19 will have them as heirs of His
peace-giving nature.
The Persecuted This implies those who are
for hated for being holy or
righteousness’ resembling Christ.
sake: Therefore, God is ready to
grant them the eternal
Luke opportunity of settling where
21: 12 they belong; i.e., in His
Kingdom.
 The Beatitudes
Hunger & Will Poor in Will engender Meekness/
engender
Thirst spirit Submission
W

Will lead to
Will lead
W
ill

inspire
ill

Will
le
to lea
ad to d
to

Holy Heart Mercy/

Wil
Wil

W
W

l in
ill
ill

l l
le

s
e

lea

p
a
ad

ire
d to

dt
to

o
Being Peacemakin
Will challenge us to
Persecuted g
J. Balisasa, 2021
The Beatitudes form,
undoubtedly, an Eight-lane
Highway to Heaven
However, the Highway is a
Narrow Way because of
demonic speed bumps and
rumble strips thereunto.
 What is your poverty about?
 What do you mourn for?
 How meek/submissive are you?
 What do you hunger and thirst for?
 How merciful/forgiving are you?
 How pure/holy are your thoughts?
 How much peace do you give to people?
 What are you persecuted for?
 If you have hitherto feared to follow
God because the constraining
conditions of the Narrow Way, you
probably have been focusing on only
one or a few of its lanes—most likely
the persecution or mourning lane!
 Open your eyes and
ply freely all the other
lanes of the Narrow
Way—the
Highway to
Heaven.
 In Matt. 5: 3-10, Jesus Christ provides
an amazing set of words that, when
carefully analyzed and synergized,
reveal the best way of practicing
holiness daily, especially at this time of
the end of the Earth’s history.
 Jesus Christ states the key pathways to
attaining holiness and then provides the
blessed outcome of faithfully plying each of
the pathways. These pathways come together
interdependently to form the Narrow Way
which in fact is the Highway to Heaven,
because of its several lanes.
 Therefore, the difference between the
Narrow Way and Broad Way does not
consist as much of their width as of the
hindrances/ease on their respective lanes.
And so, their widths may be the same (1 Cor.
10:23), but one runs on divinely-guided
freedom, while the other on self-
gratification!
The 8-lane Highway to Heaven

ne
La
g
in e
ak an
em n L
ac tio
Pe secu ane
r gL
Pe urnin
Mo ane
M erc y L
Pure-heart Lane
M
Po eeknes s
H or i L a ne
ung n Sp
e r- irit
T hi Lane
r stL
a ne
 Take your poverty-in-spirit
lane to engender in you
meekness and your hunger-
and-thirst-for-righteousness
lane which will lead you to
having a pure heart.
 Take your meekness
lane to inspire you to
be merciful, forgiving,
and a peacemaker.
 Take your hunger-
and-thirst-for-
righteousness lane to
lead you to mourning
for your salvation and
that of other sinners.
 Take your pure-heart lane to
provoke in you holy
mourning for the dying souls,
to engender mercy toward
your offenders, and lead you
to peacemaking.
 Though taking your pure-
heart and holy-mourning
lanes will enrage your
persecutors, let their
persecution challenge you
even the more to be a
peacemaker.
Rediscover Your 8-lane Highway to

ne
La
g
in e
ak an
em n L
ac tio
Pe secu ane
r gL
Pe urnin
Mo ane
M erc y L
Pure-heart Lane
M
Po eeknes s
H or i L a ne
ung n Sp
e r- irit
T hi Lane
r stL
a ne
Heaven
Be Holy on the 8-lane
Heavenward Highway