The proof is in the pudding. When I was a young child, on rare occasions, my mom would treat us to a serving of homemade chocolate pudding. I’m guessing that the longer I live, the fewer people understand how to make pudding from scratch. Now, Mom never wrote down “exactly” how she made chocolate pudding. However, one ingredient that was critical to the process was soured milk. Yet, how “soured” the milk became determined the quality of the pudding at the end. There was no way to know until you tasted the final product whether it was good or not. So, the proof is in the pudding, or better yet, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.
According to Merriam-Webster, the expressions “the proof is in the pudding”, or “the proof of the pudding is in the eating” are used to say that “the real worth, success, or effectiveness of something can only be determined by putting it to the test by trying or using it, appearances and promises aside—just as the best test of a pudding is to eat it.” To give Mom full credit, we never doubted for a second that the pudding would taste amazing. We trusted her process because she had “proven” to us that it would always be good.
Being proved
Exodus 16:4 “Then said the Lord unto Moses, Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you; and the people shall go out and gather a certain rate every day, that I may prove them, whether they will walk in my law, or no.
Exodus 20:20 “And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.
Judges 2: 22 “That through them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the Lord to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.
1 Thessalonians 5:21 “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.
Prove it
There is a central theme to each of the scriptures above, and that is “prove it”. When I first joined the church, one of my favorite activities was playing basketball. My friends and I would spend hours together on the court working on our skills. We worked on dribbling, shooting, practicing free throws, running the lines, etc. We competed with other church teams in the area. And when it was game time, we were tasked to prove that our practices were worthwhile. Did we put in the sufficient effort? Did we take our practices seriously? Were we really listening to our coach when he diagramed plays to use during game time? Was enough time spent outside of practice improving our weaknesses? When the whistle blew and the game began, the proof of our efforts became evident on the court.
Proof works both ways
We trusted our coach. We trusted our teammates, and our efforts paid off with victories. The important principle was that the “proof” worked in both directions. Our coach promised us success if we did what he said. And we promised our best effort to follow his play calls with exactness, and work as a team.
God works the same way in our lives. He will prove us to see if we will be obedient. But we can also prove Him to keep His promises.
In Malachi 3 the second half of verse 10 says, “prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.”
Put it all together
My adult life has been a testimony to the truth of Malachi’s words. Many times, I have gone to the Lord to “prove” Him and His words. And without fail, God has poured out His blessings upon me. To be clear, these blessings have sometimes come as trials and tribulations. They were given to refine my soul and help me learn humility and wisdom. But they are precious blessings indeed!
We must take time to build our relationship with God. We cannot have the blessings of such a relationship without having the actual experience. One cannot expect the assurances of heaven while maintaining devotion to the world. We need all the ingredients in place, or else, our “celestial pudding” will not taste very sweet. Therefore, my friends, prove God at His word and be prepared for the windows of heaven to be opened and blessings to come pouring down on you. The proof is in the tasting!
