Calvary Road Baptist Church
“ASLEEP”
I thought it would be good for us to consider the topic of sleep in God’s Word, especially the word “asleep.” I know what many of you are thinking, those of you who are thinking. You are thinking, “What in the world does sleep have to do with significant doctrine in the Bible?” Nothing at all. At least not directly and immediately. But by quickly surveying this fascinating, if not crucial, subject in Scripture, we do find some insights that are provocative and beneficial for our Christian lives, all the better.
As well, the matter might prove to be somewhat more interesting to one spouse than the other, especially if you are married to someone who seems to sleep at the most inopportune times, the most inconvenient times, or who uses sleep as an avenue of escape from duties and responsibilities.
Let’s look at two types of sleep, the baneful sleep, and the blessed sleep, in a not very exhaustive study from God’s Word.
First, THE BANEFUL SLEEP
The baneful sleep is the destructive sleep, the unprofitable sleep, the damaging sleep, the deadly sleep. This is the sleep that it would have been better to have skipped. This is sleep that would better have been put off, even if it meant you might be sleepy the next day. Let’s look at seven examples of baneful sleep:
First, the sleep of Sisera, Judges chapter 4. In the days of the judges, the children of Israel entered one of their periods of rebellion against God, after Ehud, one of the first of Israel’s judges, had died. Judges 4.2 tells us that the LORD sold the Israelites into the hand of the Canaanite king, Jabin. This was God’s retribution for their sin:
“And the LORD sold them into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, which dwelt in Harosheth of the Gentiles.”
In a predictable response to their oppression, the Israelites cried out to God in repentance. Hearing their cry, God raised a judge, the only judge in Israel’s history who was a woman named Deborah, whose general was a man named Barak. In the pitched conflict against the Israelites, the Canaanite general, a man named Sisera, ran away from a chariot battle, seeing the fight had been lost. Imagine how tired he must have been, fleeing for his life on foot, as we read Judges 4.18-21:
18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him, Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not. And when he had turned in unto her into the tent, she covered him with a mantle.
19 And he said unto her, Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty. And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him.
20 Again he said unto her, Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and enquire of thee, and say, Is there any man here? that thou shalt say, No.
21 Then Jael Heber’s wife took a nail of the tent, and took an hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the nail into his temples, and fastened it into the ground: for he was fast asleep and weary. So he died.
It would have been better for Sisera to have remained sleepy, thereby remaining alive. Amen?
Second, the sleep of Samson, Judges chapter 16. Samson’s name is familiar to most of us. We know him to be the most tragic of Israel’s judges. Gifted by God with supernatural power associated with the long hair of his Nazaritic calling, we remember that Samson lost his strength when he lost his hair. Read Judges 16.15-20 and be reminded this tragedy in the life of the man who might have been, but for this event, Israel’s greatest judge:
15 And she said unto him, How canst thou say, I love thee, when thine heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.
16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death;
17 That he told her all his heart, and said unto her, There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother’s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.
18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up this once, for he hath shewed me all his heart. Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought money in their hand.
19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and she caused him to shave off the seven locks of his head; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him.
20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.
Then, of course, the Philistines put out his eyes and used him as a beast of burden until his hair grew back and he died exacting revenge upon his enemies. It would have been better to stay awake. Amen? Or to sleep elsewhere.
Third, the sleep of Abner, First Samuel chapter 26. Overcome with jealousy, King Saul had sought David’s life for years. But David, familiar with the Judean wilderness as perhaps no other man was, constantly escaped the traps King Saul had devised to ensnare him. In this chapter, we are told of a time that King Saul was accompanied by his commanding general, a man who seems to be portrayed in a reasonably good light in Scripture, named Abner. It seems that David, with all his cunning and his guile, was able to sneak into King Saul’s camp one night and take the king’s sword and water canteen while those responsible for protecting him, namely Abner and his men, slept. Notice what David yelled to Abner from across a gorge after sneaking back out of Saul’s encampment, as it is recorded in First Samuel 26.13-16:
13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of an hill afar off; a great space being between them:
14 And David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying, Answerest thou not, Abner? Then Abner answered and said, Who art thou that criest to the king?
15 And David said to Abner, Art not thou a valiant man? and who is like to thee in Israel? wherefore then hast thou not kept thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord.
16 This thing is not good that thou hast done. As the LORD liveth, ye are worthy to die, because ye have not kept your master, the LORD’s anointed. And now see where the king’s spear is, and the cruse of water that was at his bolster.[1]
If you have a choice of doing your duty or sleeping, faithfully discharging your ministry duties instead of sleeping in on Sunday, it’s best to do your duty and sleep later. Amen?
Fourth, the sleep of the prophet Jonah, Jonah chapter 1. When called by God to go and preach to Israel’s enemies, Jonah ran in the opposite direction, heading to Tarshish on a boat to get as far away from where God wanted him to be as possible. Though he could run away from where God wanted him to be, he could not run away from God. In Jonah 1.4, we read that a great storm was sent by the LORD, frightening to death everyone on the ship, except Jonah. Jonah 1.5 informs us the prophet was asleep:
“But Jonah was gone down into the sides of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep.”
Again, you are familiar with the incident. Jonah was awakened, whereupon he revealed who he was and what it was that God was doing. So the ship’s crew threw him overboard, at which time he was swallowed by the great fish prepared by the LORD. The rest, they say, is history. But what about Jonah’s sleep? Is it the sleep of the confident? Is it the sleep of the peaceful? I think not. It is the sleep of the cold-hearted, the callous, the indifferent. I am convinced that he had such hatred for the Assyrians, those people in Nineveh God wanted him to go and be a blessing to, and his heart was so unreasoning and cold, that he was able to sleep the sleep of the seared conscience.
Fifth, the sleep of Peter and James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration, Luke chapter 9. In Luke 9.28-31 James and John and Peter accompanied the Lord Jesus Christ up into a mountain where He wanted to pray:
28 And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.
29 And as he prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering.
30 And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias:
31 Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem.
But what happened to the three disciples with the Lord Jesus while this great transfiguration was taking place? Verse 32:
“But Peter and they that were with him were heavy with sleep: and when they were awake, they saw his glory, and the two men that stood with him.”
Sleeping through most of what went on, they saw only the final seconds of the great event, witnessing Christ in all His glory, and Moses and Elijah for just a moment. Listen to what Peter foolishly said and how God interrupted him, Luke 9.33-36:
33 And it came to pass, as they departed from him, Peter said unto Jesus, Master, it is good for us to be here: and let us make three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias: not knowing what he said.
34 While he thus spake, there came a cloud, and overshadowed them: and they feared as they entered into the cloud.
35 And there came a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is my beloved Son: hear him.
36 And when the voice was past, Jesus was found alone. And they kept it close, and told no man in those days any of those things which they had seen.
Had they not been asleep, Peter might not have foolishly imagined that the scene he witnessed was a conference between three equals. Had they not been asleep, Peter might not have begun to blurt out such foolishness that God was compelled to cut him off by interrupting him. Some of the greatest spiritual blessings imaginable can be missed when you go to sleep instead of staying awake. Amen? So, make sure that you sit close enough to your sleepy spouse or child to give ’em a good elbow to keep them awake if they are old enough to understand. Some of the greatest blessings available to the child of God are missed when a person dozes off. Now that I think of it, in my 40+ years of ministry, I have noticed but one time that a woman has dozed off on me, while most pastors will sadly acknowledge that men going to sleep while they preach happens all too often.
When I was an Air Force Academy cadet, they had a rule in class, necessitated by the fact that USAFA cadets are routinely allowed only four hours sleep a night during their first year. If a cadet got sleepy, rather than doze off on a captain or major while he was teaching, they penalized no one for standing at the back of the classroom to avoid going to sleep. That has always been my preference, though some men seem to prefer dozing to standing. I shudder to think of the consequences for a spiritual leader in the home to doze off while God’s Word is being preached. How does such a guy hold his wife’s respect, and the respect of his children?
Sixth, the sleep of Peter and James and John in the Garden of Gethsemane, Matthew chapter 26. Few of you are not somewhat familiar with the major events in Christ’s life in the last hours before His crucifixion. Of importance to us tonight is that time in the Garden of Gethsemane where He went to pray with His remaining eleven apostles, and where He was arrested. Taking James and Peter and John farther on than the rest of the disciples, the Lord Jesus Christ directed them to “tarry ye here, and watch with me,” in verse 38, evidently meaning that they should pray as He was praying. However, as we read through the next ten verses, or so, we see that those three disciples went to sleep no less than three different times. And the Lord had urged them to pray so they would not enter into temptation, because the flesh is weak, even though the spirit is willing, verse 41. But they didn’t watch and pray. They did sleep. When the soldiers came to arrest their master, they all ran. And, notably, Peter denied the three Lord times before the cock crowed, if you will remember. Just as there are lessons not learned by sleeping when you should be awake, there is also strength not acquired when you sleep when you should be awake.
Seventh, the sleep of slothfulness, Proverbs chapters 6, 20, and 24. In Proverbs 6.1-11, we see that there are some things that must be taken care of before you sleep, no matter how tired you might think yourself to be:
1 My son, if thou be surety for thy friend, if thou hast stricken thy hand with a stranger,
2 Thou art snared with the words of thy mouth, thou art taken with the words of thy mouth.
3 Do this now, my son, and deliver thyself, when thou art come into the hand of thy friend; go, humble thyself, and make sure thy friend.
4 Give not sleep to thine eyes, nor slumber to thine eyelids.
5 Deliver thyself as a roe from the hand of the hunter, and as a bird from the hand of the fowler.
6 Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise:
7 Which having no guide, overseer, or ruler,
8 Provideth her meat in the summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.
9 How long wilt thou sleep, O sluggard? when wilt thou arise out of thy sleep?
10 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
11 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth, and thy want as an armed man.
In Proverbs 20.13 there is a dire warning for those who love to snooze for more hours in a day than they should:
“Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.”
Proverbs 24.30-34:
30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
We can learn from the bad examples of the sluggard as well as the good examples of the diligent. What was seen is found in verses 30-31. What was learned is told in verses 32-34. Sleep is a wonderful thing. Sleep has been given to man as a gift from God for rest, for rejuvenation. But we must understand that our flesh desires more sleep than is needed, more sleep than is good for us, and more sleep than is profitable. Many opportunities are lost when a person sleeps at the wrong time, such as when there is a responsibility to be discharged when there is a duty to do when there are lessons to learn, when there are obligations to fulfill when there are opportunities to pursue, or when there is danger afoot.
NOT ALL SLEEP IS BANEFUL, HOWEVER. THERE IS ALSO THE BLESSED SLEEP
Three examples to look at for encouragement:
First, the blessed sleep of Christ, Luke 8.22-23:
22 Now it came to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they launched forth.
23 But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy.
This brief passage is so encouraging to me. You want to know why? It shows my Lord sleeping. And why did He sleep? Probably because He was tired. That’s great. Other passages show the Lord thirsty, the Lord weeping, the Lord angry, the Lord growing physically and in wisdom. In short, the Lord sleeping is one of those evidences in the Bible which verify the declaration that Jesus Christ was a man. He wasn’t only a man. But He was, and He is a man. He is the God-Man. Tempted in all points such as me, identified with me. He became like me, yet without sin that He might go to Calvary for me and save me from my sins. Yes, this sleep is a blessed sleep, for it is a sleep that gives me confidence that the Lord knows what it’s like to be me, by experience. He’s the Savior Who understands. Rather than reacting to the storm, the disciples should have responded to what the Lord said, “Let us go over unto the other side of the lake,” and what the Lord did. He slept. All was well.
Second, the blessed sleep of Peter, Acts chapter 12. Poor Peter. He has such a bad reputation for going to sleep on the Lord twice. But he wasn’t the only one who went to sleep on the Mount of Transfiguration and in the Garden of Gethsemane. Remember, James and John were with him both times. So, why does Peter stick out in our minds so? Because he was the one foolish enough to shoot his mouth off. So, he’s the one we usually think of going to sleep at the wrong time. It’s, therefore, doubly encouraging to see Peter, in Acts chapter 12, going to sleep at the right time. Persecution against Christians is hot. Already Stephen has been martyred, and only recently, the Apostle James has been put to the sword. Now Peter is in prison awaiting execution. And what is he doing? Acts 12.6:
“And when Herod would have brought him forth, the same night Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains: and the keepers before the door kept the prison.”
Of course, the angel delivered Peter, even though the Christians praying for his deliverance didn’t believe he would be delivered, and his ministry continued for years more. But the question is this: How could Peter sleep? Peter did not sleep the sleep of sloth. He did not sleep the sleep of callous unconcern. Neither did he sleep the naive sleep of eternal optimism. No, his sleep was the sleep of confidence, the sleep of hope, the sleep of the man who is right with his Maker. Peter didn’t know that he would be rescued by a holy angel and delivered from certain execution. But his hope was built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness. He knew God was in control. And he knew that if he died, if he was martyred as some of his closest friends very recently had been, he would awaken in heaven in the presence of his Lord. This is not the peaceful sleep that every Christian enjoys when he pillows his head at night. But it’s the peaceful sleep that every Christian can enjoy when he pillows his head at night. Peter is a perfect example of Philippians 4.6-9. An example that each of us can follow, by God’s grace:
6 Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.
7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with you.
Third, there is the blessed sleep of the saints. Do you realize that when Christians die, they don’t really die? Time and time again, Scripture refers to the physical death of God’s children as sleep.[2] First Corinthians 11.29-30 indicates that Christians who have died premature deaths because of sin are Christians whose condition is described as sleep:
29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
30 For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
As well, in Acts 7.60, we read that even the first martyr, Stephen, when he expired from being stoned to death, “fell asleep.” Why, do you suppose, both Christians who have committed sins unto premature death, as well as Christians who die great and glorious deaths for their Lord Jesus Christ, are both said to be asleep instead of dead? I’m not sure the Bible says, definitively, but I might suggest a reason that seems plausible to me. We refer to it as sleep when someone lays down and is relatively inanimate for some time, but who we expect to rise up soon. Isn’t that a fair description of sleep? I think it is. We could get quite medical and talk about rapid eye movement sleep and alpha brain wave patterns and all that, but sleep is when someone who still exists, who is still functional, is physically inanimate. Think about it. Isn’t physical death, then, sleep for the Christian? Isn’t it a time of physical inactivity only, that is only temporary? Sure it is. So, the Christian can reasonably be thought of as being asleep when he or she experiences physical death. But, for the child of God, death doesn’t end anything. Does it? Oh no. For the child of God, death is simply a veil to pass through on the way to eternity, something to be endured, something to be experienced while waiting for the resurrection. First Corinthians 15.51-58:
51 Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.
55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
56 The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.
Provocative, this brief study of sleep. We’ve seen the baneful sleep, and we’ve seen the blessed sleep. Sleep is baneful if you sleep instead of perform your duty if you sleep instead of maintain your own or someone else’s safety, if you sleep with whom or where you’ve no business sleeping if you sleep when you ought to be learning or growing spiritually, or when you sleep the sleep of the sluggard and the sloth.
But sleep doesn’t have to be baneful. The Lord’s sleep is a comfort, a verification, an illustration, a declaration, of His humanity. And Peter’s sleep in prison is an illustration of someone blessed with the peace that passeth all understanding.
Finally, the Christian’s sleep of physical death. Too often, we talk of seeing deceased loved ones on the other side, seeing them in heaven. But of course, if they’re not saved, you’ll never see them again, for even if you die and go to Hell yourself, the most you can hope for is to hear their cries of torment in the pitch blackness of the damned.
But if your deceased loved one is a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, and if you are a Christian, though you will see them in heaven, you’ll also see them before then. You’ll see them at the resurrection, at the Rapture, before you get to heaven.
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[1] Headrest, Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary, (New York: Barnes & Noble Books, 1996), page 205.
[2] Deuteronomy 31.16; 2 Samuel 7.12; Psalm 13.3; John 11.11; Acts 13.36; 1 Corinthians 11.30; 15.51; 1 Thessalonians 4.14; 5.10
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