Daniel 4: When Pride Meets Humility - Your Spiritual Legacy

To my kids,

What I appreciate most about The Blueprint is its timeless nature. I cannot fathom how every parable, story, and proverb written can directly relate to everyone—both young and old. This is a testament to the kind of God I serve. Literally everything we face? The Bible already has a story about it and shows us how to handle various situations we find ourselves in.

In Daniel 4, we meet King Nebuchadnezzar sending a message to people of every race, nation, and language throughout the world. He publicly acknowledges God the Most High through what He did for him—how great His signs are, how powerful His wonders, and how His kingdom will rule through all generations.

He reached a point in his life where he knew, understood, and acknowledged where everything he had came from, including the messages in his dreams. He knew and understood the power of the Most High—but did that lead him to become who God wanted him to be? Or to repent? No, it did not.

This teaches us that not everyone who proclaims the name of Jesus truly knows who He is or has a relationship with Him. This is especially relevant today, when someone can easily fool you just because you worship on the same day, praise God together, or pray together. But the Bible warns against this and gives us a remedy.

Let's turn to John 15 for a moment. I went to church this past Sabbath, and the pastor's interpretation of John 15 stayed with me. I believe it will remain valuable for decades to come.

John 15:1-17

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

"I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples...

"You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other."

🌿 Grapevine vs. Branches — What's the Difference?

A grapevine is like the main body of a grape plant—similar to a tree trunk. It stays in the ground and lives for many years. The branches grow out from the grapevine and produce leaves and grapes.

🌱 How They Work Together:

The grapevine supplies water and nutrients to the branches
The branches use those resources to grow grapes
Without the vine, the branches cannot grow
Without the branches, the vine cannot produce fruit

They are a team—the vine is the strong foundation, and the branches are the fruit-bearers.

God is the Gardener, and He does three main things:

✂️ Pruning

This means cutting off certain parts of a plant—like extra branches, leaves, or stems—to help it grow better.

Why it's done: To shape the plant, remove unhealthy parts, and encourage new growth.

How it helps: The plant doesn't waste energy on weak or dead parts, so it grows stronger and produces more fruit.

☀️ Lifting Branches for Sunlight

Plants need sunlight like we need food! Gardeners sometimes lift or tie up branches so that sunlight reaches all parts of the plant. This helps grapes or fruits ripen evenly.

🪓 Cutting Away Dead Branches

Dead branches are like broken parts—they don't work and can attract pests or disease. Removing them keeps the plant healthy and allows new, strong branches to grow.

🌱 Why It All Matters

These actions help the plant stay healthy, grow better, and produce more fruit. The gardener is like a coach—guiding the plant to be its best!

We can see that without the grapevine, there is no way to be a fruitful branch. We are all born as branches in the Lord's vineyard. The decisions we make daily determine what kind of branch we will become. I hate to be the one to break it to you, but if you abuse the grace of God, you will be cut away forever—and that will not be pleasant.

The decision lies with you regarding what kind of branch you want to be.

The point I am making is this: There is no Christianity without obeying the commands of God. You cannot separate the two. You will find people who boldly proclaim or acknowledge who Christ is, but their lifestyle and decisions tell a different story. This is why Jesus said, "You will know them by their fruits." We see this with King Nebuchadnezzar, who received visitations and messages from God, had Daniel as an interpreter, knew of God, and proclaimed Him publicly—yet when it was time to obey, he could not. This shows that he had the physical posture, but his heart remained unchanged.

Was it because of the public deliverance of the three Hebrew men that he felt compelled to make such a public declaration—for the crowd's approval? I don't know.

One of the many lessons for you, my children, is this: Not everyone who says "Jesus, Jesus" truly knows who Jesus is. Not everyone in the church who stands up and preaches truly knows Him. This is why the spirit of discernment is offered to us. With it, no one can fool you. It is nearly impossible to navigate life in a way that pleases Christ without it.

Hold onto it as much as possible. You will know them by their fruits.

"There is a constant danger of there being shams in pulpit preachers, whose lives contradict the words they speak; but the voice of warning and of admonition will be heard as long as time shall last; and those who are guilty of transactions that should never be entered into, when reproved or counseled through the Lord's appointed agencies, will resist the message and refuse to be corrected. They will go on as did Pharaoh, and Nebuchadnezzar, until the Lord takes away their reason, and their hearts become unimpressible. The Lord's Word will come to them; but if they choose not to hear it, the Lord will make them responsible for their own ruin."

— Ellen G. White

Going back to the king—he received another message from God, and his pride held him back from obeying. And guess what? What was foretold came to pass.

Pride is one trait you should fight to get rid of. Pride has no place in the grapevine. Humble yourself before you drink from the cup of God's wrath, because when Doomsday arrives, it will not be pleasant. What's interesting is that pride can take many forms—even "Christianized" forms: pride in ministry, in our gifts, in our service, or in the doors God has opened for us. But pride in any form is obnoxious to God, which is why the Bible contains so many warnings against it.

Nebuchadnezzar learned that God is able to humble the proud. How much better, then, if we humble ourselves first? Obedience is better than sacrifice.

In Daniel's life, the desire to glorify God was the most powerful motive. He realized that when standing before men of influence, failing to acknowledge God as the source of his wisdom would make him an unfaithful steward. His constant recognition of the God of heaven before kings, princes, and statesmen did not detract one bit from his influence. King Nebuchadnezzar—before whom Daniel so often honored God's name—was eventually thoroughly converted and learned to "praise and extol and honour the King of heaven."

The king upon the Babylonian throne became a witness for God, giving warm, eloquent testimony from a grateful heart that partook of the mercy, grace, righteousness, and peace of the divine nature.

Be obedient. His word prevails.

With Love,

Mom