The Secret to Secure and Sweet Rest (Proverbs 3:21-24)
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Proverbs 3:21-24
My son, do not lose sight of these—
keep sound wisdom and discretion,
22 and they will be life for your soul
and adornment for your neck.
23 Then you will walk on your way securely,
and your foot will not stumble.
24 If you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
Picture this: Peter is in prison. Chained up. Surrounded by two soldiers. Tomorrow is his execution day. And what’s he doing? Sleeping. Not tossing and turning. Not panicking. Actually, he’s sleeping so soundly that an angel has to shake him awake. Talk about being at rest. And that’s the kind of rest these verses are talking about.
These verses present the fruits of keeping Jesus – the wisdom of God – ever in your sight. He is the One who gives ‘life’ to ‘the soul’, as verse 22 tells us.
And not only does He bring life, but these verses highlight the security that comes from keeping Him in view. With Christ,
‘...you will walk on your way securely,
and your foot will not stumble.
24 If you lie down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.’
Here we see the security of God in motion and at rest, as we walk and as we lie down, which is significant as it signifies security at all times and in all situations.
And what a blessing that is! This week is currently Spring Break for us Chapel Hill students, and on a week like this everyone in one way or another is desiring rest. And that’ll be a theme from this week’s verses in Proverbs.
So verses 21-22 tell us to keep wisdom – Jesus – always in view. And what happens when we do? Verses 23-24 tell us: security and rest. That’s the connection.
The wisdom of God leads to the peace of God.
That means when Christ is at the center, you can walk secure and rest secure. Verse 24 says ‘if you lie down, you will not be afraid’... the presence of God removes fear, and not only that, but it provides ‘sweet sleep’.
Such was the sleep of David in Psalm 3, even amid the tumultuous warfare with his rebellious son Absalom. And like I said earlier, such was the sleep of Peter – chained in prison, flanked by two soldiers, on the night before his likely execution, sound asleep and at complete peace, to the point an angel had to probe him awake.
That’s the kind of unexplainable, unimaginable rest that is offered to us and possible for us when we do not lose sight of Christ as our Savior, as our Lord, as our Wisdom, as our life. When we treat Him like we do a piece of jewelry, and He is adorned around our neck at all times, we can rest in this security… what a beautiful thing. That’s the rest that’s available to you. Not just in eternity – but right now.
There are many questions I think we can pose in reflection to these verses, but I’ll ask just two:
Do you know this security and this rest?
How can you, as this verse says, ‘not lose sight of’ the Lord, His Ways, His Word, His Will, His Wisdom, on a day like today?
Let’s pray.
