The Proof Of The Pudding
“Those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come.”
Hebrews 6:4-5 (NKJV)
Like our sayings ‘the proof of the pudding is in the eating’ and ‘the sweet taste of success’, scripture says “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in him!” (Psalm 34:8). Hebrews 6:4-5 (quoted above) speaks of “those who were once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come”, and 1 Peter 2:2-4 says we are to “desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is gracious.”
One of the greatest proofs of God’s existence is to experience living by the principles, instructions and guidance contained in his Word, the Holy Bible. God is love (1 John 4:16) and Christianity is the way of love. William Barclay said, “We may not understand how the spirit works, but the effect of the spirit on the lives of men is there for all to see; and the only unanswerable argument for Christianity is a Christian life. No man can disregard a religion and a faith and a power which is able to make bad men good.” Living the Christian life is to experience and enjoy the fruit of God’s Spirit–love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).
This is the time of year when people ‘turn over a new leaf’ and formulate resolutions to make a fresh start. So if you’ve never considered becoming a Christian, don’t be like the old TV ad, which said, “I don’t like it because I’ve never tried it!” The proof of the pudding is in the eating: Try it — You’ll like it!
Prayer
O that the whole world could experience God’s way of love! Send out your Spirit, Father in Heaven, to bring the wonderful taste of its fruit to this starving world.
Amen
Study by Nancy Silcox