The Rapture of the ChurchSample

Day 3: We Which Are Alive and Remain

We have discussed that the Rapture is a real, biblical event that is quickly approaching, and today, I want to make it very clear who will be taken when it occurs.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:15 KJV, Paul writes, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.”

The words “alive and remain” are important, so important that Paul uses them both here in 1 Thessalonians 4:15 and later in verse 17 KJV. In both verses, these words are the exact same, identical Greek phrase. Paul was making a statement so profound that he found the need to repeat it twice in this passage verbatim, so we should take the time to understand exactly what it is he was saying.

Let’s begin with the word “alive.” In both verses, 1 Thessalonians 4:15 and 17 KJV, “alive” is translated from the words hoi zoontoi, a plural form of the Greek word zao, which not only means to be alive but conveys the idea of those who are fully alive, robust, thriving, vibrant, and vigorous. Further, it specifically depicts spiritual aliveness. This description contrasts with those who are merely physically alive with those who have spiritual life, robustness, thriving, vibrance, and vigor.

This emphatic and specific description in the Greek informs us prophetically that there will be a group of fully alive and vibrant people of God at the time of the Rapture. These will be those who stand by the Word of God, who know the power of the Holy Spirit, and who radiate the glory of God. In other words, Christ is not coming for those who merely have a form of godliness but for those who are, as one expositor states, the living ones or the vibrant ones, the ones who are fully engaged in their faith.

That brings us to Paul’s description of these people as those who “remain.” This is the Greek phrase hoi perileipomenoi, the plural form of perileipomai, which is a compound of the words peri and leipo.

The word peri means around, and it depicts a circumference or an outer edge, and the word leipo pictures what is left over. The King James Version translates this phrase simply as “remain” — but this Greek word is rich with meaning. The wording specifically depicts the remaining outer remnant of a garment; a fragmented, leftover, end piece of a garment; or a residue. It denotes a smaller amount that is left over from a larger original piece. It could also be used militarily to describe soldiers who had endured or survived a battle. In this context, the word meant the majority of soldiers had been lost along the way, but there was a remnant who had endured, remained, and survived.

Paul was a brilliant linguist who knew exactly what these words meant as he penned them, so their use clearly implies that only a remnant of authentic believers may exist at the time of the Rapture. It could indicate a remnant of all those who have ever been saved — or it might refer to the possibility that there will not be many. This second idea coincides with what Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 KJV and 1 Timothy 4:1 KJV about the widespread apostasy that will occur in the time frame before Jesus’ return for the Church at the end of the age. Regardless, there will be a faithful remnant who has endured, remained faithful to the end, and survived the storms of life. These are the ones who are spiritually alive, vibrant, and vigorous.

For Your Consideration

• What does it mean to you to be spiritually alive, vibrant, or vigorous? What differentiates an engaged believer from one who has only the “form of godliness” (2 Timothy 3:5 KJV)?
• What are some ways that you are engaging well with your faith? What are some areas where you could improve in being a spiritually alive believer?