For the believer, to be out of the body is to be present with God (2 Corinthians 5:6-10). That means we will be in fellowship with God the moment we die. After all, we are one with God now in Spirit if we truly trust Him alone for salvation. We are hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3).

We get a little picture of the presence of New Testament saints in heaven with God in Revelation 6:9-11, where they are seen praying for what’s going on down on earth. It shows they are aware of what is happening, at least the big picture, and they care about it and are still asking God to fully and finally fix it, which He promises to do soon.

The term “sleep” is what confuses people. It’s used in a way that means someone is dead at times in some Scripture translations, more like a turn of phrase, hence the trouble. Paul refers to “those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thessalonians 4:15) at one point, but does not imply those people are in some sort of spiritual sleep, and other Scriptures provide the clarity if we take it all into context together. Some people believe that Christians will be in some sort of spiritual sleep until the return of Christ, but the Bible teaches that we go to be with God immediately upon death.

The Bible also teaches that when Jesus Christ returns to earth one day (which may happen sooner rather than later), He will resurrect the bodies of all believers. Of that moment, when believers will be instantly in God’s presence and present in an immortal, perfected body, Paul writes, “Death will be swallowed up in victory.”  What an amazing day that will be! (c.f., I Corinthians 15:51-56).