“So David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David.” 1 Kings 2:10 (KJV).
“So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.” Job 14:12 (KJV).
“Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death” Psalm 13:3 (KJV).
“These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep. Then said his disciples, Lord, if he sleep, he shall do well. Howbeit Jesus spake of his death: but they thought that he had spoken of taking of rest in sleep. Then said Jesus unto them plainly, Lazarus is dead.” (John 11:11-14).
“And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down, and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. And Saul was consenting unto his death.” Acts 7:59; 8:1a.
The Bible in several places compared death with sleep. When you sleep, at times you dream dreams. At times, while asleep in the comfort of your room, you will discover yourself discussing with friends and relations in other places. When you wake up, you dismiss it as a dream you had while sleeping. Have you ever pondered who this personality is that does all manner of things in dreams while the body is asleep? Do you not know that man is a tripartite being made up of spirit, soul and body? See 1 Thess. 5:23. The body of man is the house in which the soul and spirit dwell. In the sleep state, the spiritual part of man continues in a state of full consciousness and you suddenly wake up and dismiss it as a dream. Don’t you know that each time you sleep, dream dreams and wake up, God is giving you an opportunity to realize that there is a life after this life? We urge you to utilize this God-given opportunity to amend your life which hitherto has been lived in sin, before you sleep the sleep of death. If you sleep eight hours in a day and wake up, you have received eight solid hours of warning from God to amend your ways before you sleep in death.
“For God does speak-now one way, now another-though man may not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men as they slumber in their beds, he may speak in their ears and terrify them with warnings, to turn man from wrongdoing and keep him from pride, to preserve his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword.” Job 33:14-18 (NIV).
At death, the spirit returns to God while the soul continues in a state of consciousness either in Heaven or in hell; see the story of Lazarus and the rich man in Luke 16:19-31. Your eternal destination depends on whether or not you accepted the only Son of God as your Lord and Saviour while awake.
It is a privilege to sleep and wake up; several people have slept and never woke up. Before you lie down to sleep again, we urge you to heed the divine warning from God by acknowledging that you have sinned against God and that you cannot save yourself from sin. Confess your sins to the LORD JESUS CHRIST as the only Son of God who came into the world in the flesh, died for your sins and rose from the dead to take away your sins. We implore you to forsake your sins and then put your faith in the Lord Jesus while you are still awake before you sleep in death.
If you have put your faith in the Lord Jesus after reading this tract, we request you to write and tell us so that we will rejoice with you and continue to pray for you.