Luke 16:22 And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; 23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. 26 And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.
Clearly they are not sleeping as we would relate to sleeping.
The body sleeps and will be resurrected; the soul and spirit are alive forever more, with many destined for separation from God's presence by refusal of His deliverance. The soul and spirit are already timeless in the sense that those aspects of our being do not die with bodily dissolution. The reality of the body 'sleeps', but will be re-created in the Last resurrection.
Even BEFORE the 'final' judgement?
Is this not a PARABLE?
A ‘story’ designed to illustrate a religious truth?