Shabbat Shalom family,
Having just celebrated another great rejoicing Feast of Sukkoth, we give thanks to יהוה our Elohim for His loving-commitment that endures forever. During this Feast we had the great opportunity to assess the fruit of our lives, as we took each day of the 10 days we were away, to dig a little deeper into the 9 fruit of the spirit that Sha’ul lists for us in Galatiyim/Galatians 5:22-23. As I was meditating on the Word this week and reflecting on this past Feast of Sukkoth and the fruit that ought to be evident in our lives, I continued to consider the concept of ‘fruit’ and how important it is for us to have much fruit being brought forth, as we live set-apart lives unto our Master and Elohim.
יהושע Messiah clearly tells us that we shall know people by their fruit, and therefore the clear evidence we are given in order to know someone is by their fruit, hence the importance of bearing good fruit is critical, as every tree that bears bad fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire! Mattithyahu/Matthew 7:16-23!
In continuing with the concept of fruit, tonight in a message called, ‘THE FRUIT OF OUR LIPS!’, I want us to be reminded of our need to be bearing good fruit… and take great care in ensuring that the fruit that comes forth from our lips actually lines up with the true character of complete set-apartness that is seen in our actions, as we bear the peaceable fruit of righteousness continually!
Iḇ’rim/Hebrews 13:15 “Through Him then, let us continually offer up a slaughter offering of praise to Elohim, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His Name.”
The continual offering up of praise to Elohim is The fruit of our lips! The Greek word translated as ‘giving thanks’ is ὁμολογέω homologeō – Strong’s G3670 which means, ‘confess, profess, promise, give thanks, praise, celebrate’, and also means, ‘to profess one’s self the worshipper of one’. This ‘giving thanks’ to His Name is a clear picture of words that involve an intense action of acknowledging the True Name that saves, having confessed our sin and guilt and profess our worship of the One who saves us, and showing this through both our words and actions.
We are to praise the Name of יהושע, our Master and Elohim, יהוה who saves us! We proclaim, make mention, acknowledge, make our boast in and extol His great Name, in prayer and in the offering of continual praise – a praise that is in sync with an uncompromised life of complete set-apartness, as we walk in righteousness and guard His commands! In speaking of many unruly men, senseless talkers and deceivers, who teach what they should not teach for filthy gain, Sha’ul tells Titos in:
Titos/Titus 1:16 “They profess to know Elohim, but in works they deny Him, being abominable, and disobedient, and unfit for any good work.”
Many false teachers claim to know Elohim but their word and work contradict each other – their word confesses Elohim while their work denies Him, rendering the fruit of their lips as bad fruit, revealing that they are tress that will be cut down and thrown into the fire! Having said this of false teachers, we must also be aware that this can be evident in many who are not teachers and who claim to know Elohim, yet by their lawless actions deny Him and His Table!
The offering up of the ‘the fruit of our lips’ is a quotation from Hoshěa/Hosea 14, in the appeal and call for Yisra’ĕl to return to יהוה:
Hoshěa/Hosea 14:2 “Take words with you, and return to יהוה. Say to Him, “Take away all crookedness, and accept what is good, and we render the bulls of our lips.”
The Greek word used in Iḇ’rim/Hebrews 13:15 and in the LXX for Hoshěa/Hosea 14:2 is καρπός karpos – Strong’s G2590 which means, ‘fruit, benefit, gain, harvest, produce’ and typically refers to fruit that has been plucked, rendering the figurative meaning of the labours, works or acts of those who have fitted themselves with every good work unto everlasting life.
The Hebrew word used here in Hoshěa/Hosea 14:2 for ‘bull’ is פַּר par – Strong’s H6499 which means, ‘bull, young bull, steer, heifer’, and in a metaphoric sense in speaks of us bringing our all and our best, offering up all we have, as we make our confession before Him who saves us and proclaim His praise!
Bring the ‘Bull of our lips’ costs us! It costs us our all! It will cost us relationships, and will cost us customs and handed down traditions and inherited comforts of the flesh, yet it will bring about the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who are trained by the disciplining of the Word!
The very next verse in Hoshěa/Hosea 14 teaches us how the confession of our lips and resulting actions will result in יהוה becoming our Saviour! In declaring that Ashshur will not save us is an acknowledgment of that under which we have been brought up, has been in error and a clear recognition that our once captive state of upbringing can never save us! This is vital in our offering the bull of our lips, as we recognise a repeated theme in Scripture with reference to a returning remnant, in that the confession of the falsehood under which we our fathers have walked is vital in recognising the True Saviour and King under whom we choose to submit and follow!
פַּר par – Strong’s H6499 which means, ‘bull, young bull, steer, heifer’, in the ancient pictographic Hebrew Alphabet looks like this:
Pey – פַּ:
This letter in the ancient script is pictured as , which is an ‘open mouth’ and carries the meaning of ‘speak and blow’, from the functions of the mouth, and can have the meaning of ‘scatter’ by blowing. It can also mean sword or beard as in things with edges, as well as a region in depicting a place with edges or boundaries. It also can represent that which has been spoken forth from the words of one’s mouth, as being established!
Resh – ר:
The Ancient picture for this letter is , the head of a man. This letter has the meanings of ‘head’ or ‘man’ as well as ‘chief, top, beginning or first’.
In recognising how we are to render the ‘bull of our lips’, we can see from this word for ‘bull’ in the ancient Hebrew alphabet, in regards to the ‘bull of our lips’, the clear need for us to take words with us to our Head and Saviour, and confess our crookednesses before Him and let our words be followed up with the necessary actions that submit to the one we confess as Head and master!
One of the biggest stumbling blocks for many, in their inability to walk wholeheartedly in the Truth and guard the Torah, is in their inability to render the bull of their lips. By that I mean that they are unable to acknowledge that their upbringing has been in error. When a proper rendering of the bull of one’s lips happens then יהוה can heal us of all our backsliding and cause our lips to be filled with the fruit of our mouths, as we begin to speak and do His Torah, with continual thanksgiving and praise!
What words are on your lips? Are the words of your mouth pleasing to Elohim? Have you fully rendered the bull of your lips? By that I mean, have you fully acknowledged the error of your ways and the ways that were inherited under falsehood, and can now walk in the purity of a renewed speech and action! It is יהוה who creates in us the good fruit of our lips, as we see this clear promise given to a backslidden Yisra’ĕl that returns:
Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57:18-19 “I have seen his ways, but now I heal him, and I lead him, and restore comforts to him and to his mourners, 19 creating the fruit of the lips: peace, peace to him who is far off and to him who is near,” said יהוה, “and I shall heal him.”
Creating the fruit of the lips, which will declare peace to those far off and those near, is a wonderful prophetic picture of the restoration of the two Houses of Yisra’ĕl and Yehuḏah through the Blood of Messiah, and His Body that we are grafted into! We who were once far off and without Elohim in the world have now been brought near by the Blood of Messiah and I am sure that when Sha’ul wrote these words in Eph’siyim/Ephesians 2 that he was thinking of this passage in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57.
The restoration of praise that can be brought froth on our lips is only by the creative work of our Master and Elohim.
יהוה creates the fruit of our lips by giving us a sure cause for thanksgiving as a result of His steadfast loving-commitment to His Covenants of Promise!
He creates the fruit of our lips!!! When Mosheh questioned his own ability to speak what יהוה was commanding him to, יהוה made it very clear to Mosheh who it is who made the mouth of man:
Shemoth/Exodus 4:11-12 “And יהוה said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Or who makes dumb, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, יהוה? 12 “And now, go, and I shall be with your mouth and teach you what to say.”
The One who created us is the One who made our mouths and He is the One who is with us and who teaches us what to say! We have to be listening to the Good Teacher, having forsaken all falsehood and lies, in order to embrace the truth completely and speak it boldly and plainly, always being ready to give an answer of the sure hope we have in our Master, followed up by right actions of obedience!!!
יהושע tells us that we should not resolve to premeditate what we will answer under persecution for the Truth, as He will give us a mouth and wisdom to speak that which cannot be resisted or refuted (Luqas/Luke 21:15).
Our ability to speak boldly and be a true witness of the Truth can only be done when our words and actions are in line with each other and are not contradictory to one another!
The ability to bear the good fruit of righteousness and have the fruit of our lips resulting in continual praise for our Master and Elohim is made possible by the implanted Word, which we are able to receive when we throw away all that which is wrong:
Ya’aqoḇ/James 1:21 “Therefore put away all filthiness and overflow of evil, and receive with meekness the implanted Word, which is able to save your lives.”
The parable of the sower and the seed teaches us our need to have hearts that are prepared to receive the implanted Word that saves us, and without that Good Seed – that is the Word, which is Messiah in us, we are unable to be saved! This can only be possible by the working of Elohim alone!
In Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57:19 the Hebrew word for ‘fruit’ is not the typical word we usually see being translated as ‘fruit’, which is פְּרִי peri – Strong’s H6529 which means, ‘fruit, produce’. Here in this verse it is a Hebrew word that is only used twice in Scripture, which is the word נוֹב noḇ – Strong’s H5108 which means, ‘fruit, praise’, which comes from the root verb נוּב nuḇ – Strong’s H5107 which means, ‘to bear fruit, flourish, increase, yield’, and this word נוּב nuḇ – Strong’s H5107 is translated as ‘brings forth’ in:
Mishlĕ/Proverbs 10:31 “The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the tongue of perverseness is cut out.”
When looking at the ancient Hebrew alphabet we are able to see a great picture and lesson through the rendering of this word used for ‘fruit’ in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57:19 – that is the fruit of the lips that יהוה creates on the returning remnant.
In the ancient Hebrew pictographic alphabet the Hebrew word נוֹב noḇ – Strong’s H5108 which means, ‘fruit, praise’, looks like this:
Nun – נ:
This is the letter ‘nun’ (נֵ), which in the ancient text is pictured as , which is a ‘spouting seed’, and gives the idea of ‘continuation or an offspring or an heir’, speaking of that which sprouts forth will be the heir of the promise of continuation, and represents one’s life expectancy.
Waw/Vav – וֹ:
This is the Hebrew letter ‘waw’ or ‘vav’ (וֹ), which in the ancient script is pictured as , which is a peg or ‘tent peg’, which was used for securing or tying the tent or other items. The possibility of it having a Y-shape is to show that it prevents the rope form slipping off. The root meaning of this letter is ‘to add, secure or hook’ as well as ‘bind’.
Beyt – ב:
This is the letter ‘beyt’ (ב), which in the ancient script has this letter as , which pictures a tent floor plan and means, ‘house’ or ‘tent’. It represents family and the importance of those who are inside the tent as opposed to the tent structure itself, and is the Dwelling Place of the Most High, which we are, as we are as living stones being built up in Messiah.
In the AHLB (Ancient Hebrew Lexicon Bible), Jeff Benner explains that when two pictographs are put together, a Parent Root word is formed, and when looking at the parent root of this word in the ancient Hebrew pictographic alphabet we see the following:
With the ‘nun’ (m) – meaning ‘seed’ and the ‘beyth’ (ב) – meaning ‘tent or house’ representing what is inside, the combined meaning of this parent root word is ‘SEED INSIDE’!
This is a great picture for us, as we know that fruit typically has its seed inside itself!
When we further consider this word used in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57:19, and recognise the ‘waw’ (וֹ) – being placed in the middle, which means, ‘to add or secure’, we are further able to see a wonderful picture of
‘THE SECURE SEED INSIDE’, or ‘THE SEED SECURED INSIDE’
Galatiyim/Galatians 3:16 “But the promises were spoken to Aḇraham, and to his Seed. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Messiah”
This speaks of the fruit that is created inside of us – that is Messiah – The Seed – in us, secured in us by His life, death and resurrection, creating in us the ability to bear much fruit, rendering the fruit of our lips being filled with a continual offering of praise!
I mentioned that this word נוֹב noḇ – Strong’s H5108 is only used twice in Scripture, here in Yeshayahu/Isaiah 57:19 as discussed, and then again in:
Mal’aḵi/Malachi 1:12 “But you are profaning Me, in that you say, ‘The table of יהוה is defiled, and its fruit, its food, is despicable.’”
Here we see part of the rebuke given to those who profane יהוה by saying that His Table is defiled and it’s ‘fruit’ and food are despicable! In verse 7 of Mal’aḵi/Malachi 1we are told that the presenting of defiled food on the slaughter-place defiles His Table.
The Table of יהוה is a clear reference in Scripture to His Feasts/Appointed Times that He has commanded us to keep, and those who reject the need to guard the Sabbaths and Feasts of יהוה, are basically saying that the fruit (that is the secure Seed) is not necessary, and so they despise Him and His table that He has set before us!
This Table is also a reference to the Pěsaḥ/Passover Meal and the Feast of Matzot, and those who disregard the need to partake of the Pěsaḥ Meal, while claiming to bring an offering of praise to יהוה are defiling and despising His redemptive work.
The Fruit – that is the securing of the Good Seed in us, was given to us by the sacrifice of our Master and Elohim, and when people claim to know Him, yet disregard the command to guard and keep His Feasts and eat at His Table as instructed through the clear commands and regulations for His Feasts, despise and defile His slaughtering, rendering the fruit of their lips as defiled and rotten, for which they will be cut off and thrown into the fire!
In bringing this a little closer to home, we are also warned by this in regards to the words we speak, and the fruit of our lips! When we who claim to walk in Him have slander, bitterness, wrath, displeasure, gossip, foolish talking, coarse jesting or filthiness on our lips, then the fruit of our lips are not as they ought to be. These things, along with all evil are to be put away from us!!! When we have defiled lips, we are in a manner of speaking defiling His Table, rendering the secured seed as null and void in our lives! Let me ask you again, How is your speech?
Ya’aqoḇ/James 3:10-11 “Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brothers, this should not be so. 11 Does the fountain send forth the sweet and the bitter from the same opening?”
As we consider the fruit of our lips, let us be reminded that our words and actions must line up, and our words of confession must also always line up with ALL the words we speak. By that I mean, we cannot claim to walk in the Master, love Him and guard His Seed in us, that is His Good Word, and speak negatively to or toward others! How many of you make your bold confession of your belief in the Master, yet you find that you tell your children that they irritate you and are useless, or shout at them and provoke your children so that they become discouraged!
There are some today who praise יהוה with their lips, yet they abuse their wives and children with harsh words that break down instead of building up, and if a man cannot get it right in his own home, how can he then be entrusted with the proclaiming of the Truth to others!
What about when you make a bold confession with your lips that you serve Elohim, yet fail to encourage, reprove, warn, and appeal others, with all patience and teaching. The fruit of our lips and the resulting actions of our lives must always reflect the Good Seed that has been deposited in us, lest we find that our hearts become hardened by the worries of this age, and the deceit of riches, and the desires for other matters, that enter in and choke out our the Good Seed, and we becomes fruitless.
Qolasim/Colossians 4:6 “Let your word always be with favour, seasoned with salt, so that you know how you ought to answer each one.”
The question I ask tonight is, “Are you seasoned?”, “Are you seasoned with the salt of the pure unadulterated Word of יהוה that has not been mixed with other worldly chemical substances of profane worship?”
The Torah is clear in teaching us that with every offering we are to bring salt, and as we live our lives as a daily living-offering, offering up the praises due to our Master and Elohim, we must be reminded to season our words with salt!
For more on being ‘seasoned with salt’, I encourage you to go and read the notes of a message I gave in 2010 called, ‘Seasoned with Salt’ from our site, under sermons 2010 menu, or click the following link:
https://atfotc.com/index.php/our-sermons/sermons-2010/177-seasoned-with-salt-leviticus-2-13-matthew-5-10-13
As I consider the words of Sha’ul, my prayer is that we can faithfully make this same bold statement, and let it be seen in our lives, through the works of righteousness and the resulting fruit of our lips being true to our bold confession:
Galatiyim/Galatians 2:20 “I have been impaled with Messiah, and I no longer live, but Messiah lives in me. And that which I now live in the flesh I live by belief in the Son of Elohim, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”
Each one must examine themselves on a daily basis and guard the Good Seed that has been put in us, so that the fruit of our lips might result in a continual offering up of thanksgiving unto our Master and Elohim:
Qorintiyim Bět/2 Corinthians 13:5 “Examine yourselves whether you are in the belief – prove yourselves. Or do you not know yourselves, that יהושע Messiah is in you, unless you are disapproved.”
As we consider the need for the fruit of our lips to be pure and undefiled, mirrored with the pure and unadulterated life of complete set-apartness without compromise, our daily prayer for one another should be that we are all strengthened in the inner man, through His Spirit, that יהושע Messiah might dwell in our hearts through belief – having become rooted and grounded in love (which we looked at during Sukkoth), so that the fruit of our lips that we bear will be the abundant fruit of rejoicing praise, as we encourage one another all the more as we see the Day approaching!
The fruit of our lips – something that is extremely important to get right – all the time!!! How is the fruit of your lips? Examine yourself and may you be found to be a true and credible witness in word and deed, as Sha’ul tells us in:
Qolasim/Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the Name of the Master יהושע, giving thanks to Elohim the Father through Him.”
May we echo the words of Dawiḏ:
Tehillah/Psalm 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be pleasing before You, O יהוה, my rock and my redeemer.”
יהוה bless you and guard you; יהוה make His face shine upon you and show favour to you; יהוה lift up His face to and give you shalom!