Sermons - 1857 Author:Charles Haddon Spurgeon Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: SERMON III. THE PECULIAR SLEEP OF THE BELOVED. '' 'fur so he givctli his beloved sleep." -FaAUi txxvii. 2. The sleep of the body is the gift of God. So sa... more »id Homer of old, wheu he described it as descending from the clouds, and resting on the tents of the warriors around old Troy. And so sang Virgil, when he spoke of Palinurus falling asleep upon the prow of the ship. Sleep is the gift of God. We think that we lay our heads upon our pillows, and compose our bodies in a peaceful posture, and that, therefore, we naturally and necessarily sleep. But it is not so. Sleep is the gift of God; and not a man would close his eyes did not God put his fingers on his eyelids; did not the Almighty send a soft and balmy influnnce over his frame which lulled his thoughts into quiescence, making him enter into that blissful state of rest which we call sleep. True, there be some druga and narcotics whereby men can poison themselves well-nigh to death, and then call it sleep ; but the sleep of the healthy body is the gift of God. He bestows it; he rocks the cradle for us every night; he draws the curtain of darkness; he bids the sun shut up his burning eyes; and then he comes and says, " Sleep, sleep ; my child, I give thee sleep." Have you not known .what it is at times to lie upon your bed and strive to slumber ? and, as it is said of Darius, so might it be said of you : " the king sent for his musicians, but his sleep went from him." You have attempted it, but you could not do it; t is beyond your power to procure a healthy repose. You xmagine, if you fix your mind upon a certain subject until it shall engross your attention, you will then sleep; but you find yourself unable to do so. Ten thousand things drive throughj-o,tr brain as if the whole earth were agitated before you. You see all t...« less