Proof!

I know I chunter on a great deal about application. It's important! Because how do you really know you know unless you understand? And how do you understand the knowing without 'testing' your understanding by expressing it  - applying and incorporating the 'know'? Simply: learning leads to knowledge which leads to understanding which is evidenced in your application.

The more interesting question may be: in our applying our understanding of what we know, what we've learned... to whom are we proving? To ourselves, to the 'world', to the Lord? Yes to all. It need not be a dramatic proving, but we need to be confident in what we know/believe, understand in order to apply (fill in the blank). Proving is really a refinement step. By the acting on what we know we demonstrate our level of understanding by what and how we apply this. 

Is proving scriptural?

   "Test and evaluate yourselves to see whether you are in the faith 
    and living your lives as [committed] believers. Examine yourselves 
    [not me]! Or do you not recognize this about yourselves [by an 
    ongoing experience] that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you 
    fail the test and are rejected as counterfeit?" (2 Corinthians 13:5, AMP)

   "But each one must carefully scrutinize his own work [examining his 
    actions, attitudes, and behavior], and then he can have the personal 
    satisfaction and inner joy of doing something commendable without 
    comparing himself to another." (Galatians 5:4, AMP)

The Message Bible phrases the Galatians' verse as:

   "Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have 
    been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed 
    with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must 
    take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life."

There are other scriptures that speak to this issue of proving but these 2 are representative of why applying (testing, proving) helps us grow and understand so we can become our best selves. But this bottom line is that you are really proving to yourself what you know and understand... and quite honestly this is the most important because if you don't have a complete understanding you aren't able to demonstrate fully. Besides, every learning, every 'knowing' is a building block to learn and understand further. Proving is the path to growing.