When he is sleeping is he dead?
My opinion is , if you look in the ot
when thier body died , they were told they would “ sleep with the fathers” which tells me that their spirits went into a state of rest
of they belonged to God because the resurrection hadn’t yet come.
in the New Testament the resurrection and life has come. Which changes death
“Jesus said unto her,
I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and
whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?”
John 11:25-26 KJV
so we see this in the ot for Gods people
“And when
thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.”
2 Samuel 7:12 KJV
his body was going to die and Return To dust , but we have also a spiritual body that doesn’t die in those days ot slept because they still had sin without Christ having provided his shed blood
even in the matter times of the ot when destruction to all was spoken , we hear this
“Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and
the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.”
Malachi 3:16 KJV
so after he rose you are this group who were sleeping from the ot and remembered in the book he was writing for those who believed
“and
the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.”
Matthew 27:52-53 KJV
there were others who were blotted out whose spirits wound up in the spiritual prison or “hell “
Moses said after israel worshipped the calf before the mount Sinai and Moses had interceded and saved them by offering his own life on the line for them
“Yet now, if thou wilt
forgive their sin–; and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which thou hast written.
And the LORD said unto Moses,
Whosoever hath sinned against me, him will I blot out of my book.”
Exodus 32:32-33 KJV
The New Testament isn’t like the old you have a group in Christ who hears and believes his word of life thier body dies but thoer spirit lives and goes to the lord not the grave with their body
and then another group who heard about the atonement but never come to know his word who in my view will rest like the ot until his return and face the last judgement refusing it now.
notice Jesus says “ now is the time “ and also “ the time is coming “ teo different times offering resurrection and life
“Verily, verily, I say unto you,
The hour is coming,
and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.”
John 5:25 KJV
So you have this for life
now passing from death already
“Verily, verily, I say unto you,
He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”
John 5:24 KJV
“Verily, verily, I say unto you,
If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.”
John 8:51 KJV
And then this which is
coming and Happens at the end
“Marvel not at this: for
the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and
shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.”
John 5:28-29 KJV
You have a living group in Christ who accept the atonement but also hear and believe and follow after his word which is mans judgement. And another who are raised here some of which slept in the grave with their body as the ot , and others were in hell paying thier dues having rejected the atonement and word of God
“And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”
Revelation 20:12-15 KJV
I believe Christians either pass through death and enter the kingdom of heaven , or rest in those body until the last judgement . Remember he’s bringing some with him also when he returns
“For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.”
1 Thessalonians 4:14 KJV
“And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying,
Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints,”
Jude 1:14 KJV
some rest others never enter the grave only their body rests
just some thoughts of my own though to consider or reject subjects like death we seem all have a different take to some measure