Paul repeats himself in 1 Thessalonians 4. Within three verses, he writes the same phrase twice: "alive and remain." Repetition in Scripture is not sloppy writing. It is emphasis. When God says something twice in one passage, He wants us to stop and look closer. Paul writes:

"For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord." 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 (NKJV)

This passage describes the Rapture. The phrase "caught up" translates the Greek verb (harpazō) ἁρπάζω — "to seize, to catch away suddenly." One day the Lord will descend, the dead in Christ will rise, and a living generation of believers will meet Him in the air.

But notice the phrase Paul writes twice: alive and remain. The word translated "remain" is the Greek participle (perileipomenoi) περιλειπόμενοι — "those who are left over, who survive." It is a survival word. It describes people who are still here after everything that came against them has passed.

There is a difference between "alive" and "remain." A four-year-old is alive by simple fact. She has not yet faced much. But the person who remains has come through something. He faced sickness and outlasted it. He went through trials and tribulations and survived them. "Alive" is a condition. "Remain" denotes power.

So Paul, who says that he speaks "by the word of the Lord," describes a generation of believers who do not merely exist at the end. They endure. They come through the pressures and plagues of the last days still on their feet, healthy and present when the trumpet sounds.

How will they do it? I believe God will give His people a revelation from His Word just prior to the Rapture: a revelation that shows believers how to walk in divine health, how to not only be alive but remain alive and thrive until Jesus returns. This is not a new gospel or a message delivered by an angel. It is a fresh sight of what God has already written.

This fits the pattern God stated long ago. His words carry His life:

"My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh." Proverbs 4:20-22 (NKJV)

And it fits the purpose Jesus announced for His coming:

"I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." John 10:10 (NKJV)

Abundant life is not limited to the spirit. It shows up in the body as health, strength, and energy. It shows up in a generation that survives what should have removed it.

So what should you do with this? Expect it. God does not hide the last generation's provision from the last generation. Open the Word. The revelation that sustains this generation will come from Scripture, so read it with fresh attention. And do what Paul commands at the end of the passage:

"Therefore comfort one another with these words." 1 Thessalonians 4:18 (NKJV)

These words were written to comfort you, not to frighten you. A generation will stand on the earth, meet the Lord in the air, and never taste death. Paul said it twice so you would believe it once.

The last generation will not survive by accident. It will remain because it found the life God already put in His Word.