Who Will Be the Next John MacArthur?
John F. MacArthur has had a monumental impact during his 54 (and counting) years of ministry. The Lord Jesus has used MacArthur’s faithfulness in numerous ways and gave him the gifts and ability to discharge his duty all these decades. In God’s providence, He chose to put John MacArthur on planet earth during a time in which media was beginning to reach the farthest corners of the earth and then provided MacArthur with a maximized impact through multiple mediums. All the while, his love for Grace Community Church, preaching the Word, and pastoral ministry was the driving force in all of this. During this unique era in which he has unleashed God’s truth one verse at a time, innumerable masses have experienced salvation, sanctification, edification, and inspiration (as in, “feeling compelled to follow his footsteps into ministry”) as a result. Taking credit for these spiritual results is not something John MacArthur ever does, nor am I attempting to do so. Like Martin Luther, after the Reformation exploded across Europe and beyond, MacArthur has often remarked, “The Word did it all.”
Due to his immeasurable impact and massive shoes (that took 50+ years to grow), I hear men of all ages ask the same question again and again: Who will be the next John MacArthur? Like mere men, we all have moments of fascination with how God appoints leaders in their time. In this, ministers are both players on the field in the heat of the game, yet also fans of God’s plan who eagerly wonder about all that He is doing. Yet beyond the simple wonder of looking forward to what God has in store, there is a dark side to the question: Who is the next John MacArthur? I find that two approaches to this oft-broached subject are outright sin and we do well to be rid of them.
First, if we wonder with fear.
The idea that God’s plan is somehow not going to come to pass or that we are doomed because John MacArthur eventually goes into glory is laughable — perhaps MacArthur himself would mock such an attitude most of all, especially from men who are trained to know better.
Second, if we wonder with pride.
There are those who want to speculate, or even dangerously name names of the who’s who as a sort of pompous game of fallible prophecy. Surely it’s this man or that man. How such speculation must grieve the Spirit of God who raises up mere men at His own beck and call, not our bloviated guessing games? God has never been short on soldiers willing to live and die for the gospel.
Both now and when John MacArthur graduates into glory, no one needs to wonder who the next John MacArthur will be. Such dramatic pontifications should be left to those who sit around the Reformed water cooler wasting time engaging in idle chatter rather than soul-winning, preaching, shepherding, and theologizing. I recall a friend describing how John MacArthur spoke to the men in the Doctor of Ministry program at The Master’s Seminary not long ago and told them something to the effect of, “Don’t try to be me. Be you!” His sound advice is a foreshadowing of what we will all need to be reminded of in the years ahead. As the future unfolds, all will be how God intends it to be. Will there be a gap as men like R.C. Sproul have gone into glory and men like MacArthur go on into glory? Surely, but primarily in our hearts. The fact of the matter of that Jesus did not promise to build conferences, comradery, seminaries, or publishing houses. Rather, He promised to build His church. That, my friends, will continue hour by hour and minute by minute in the places these men made disciples and around the world! Like missionary heroes in eras gone by, they will have pioneered new territory and planted trees that provide much shade, but others will come in droves to continue the work. A generation of known and unknown sword-wielding warriors carry onward from village huts to city blocks and suburbs, thankful for MacArthur’s unwavering example and aiming to follow it while being careful of getting lost in mesmerized meanderings unfit for men of God. And that is precisely what MacArthur has stressed time and time again and what the recent MacArthur Center Podcast reiterated excellently in its episode, “MacArthur and His Successor.” Faithful men beget faithful men (2 Timothy 2:2). Thousands upon thousands more will continue to proclaim the truth and burn with a zeal for souls and love for Christ. If anything, John MacArthur’s impact won’t be replaced by one man, but continued by countless expositors who link the genesis of their ministries to John MacArthur’s faithful example of preaching the Word and training men. All will unfold according to the will of God.
As Scripture and history already testify, God’s servants are but clay pots, yet we hold a great treasure (2 Corinthians 4:7-9). We are useful to the King as those who aim to please Him while here, and a shell of dust once our calling is complete (2 Corinthians 5:9-11). We are esteemed by those we serve, but scorned by those who hate the truth (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13; 1 Corinthians 4:13). We are loved by those who are edified by our gospel preaching, but hated by the world (John 15:18). We are here today, then gone tomorrow (James 4:14).
May it be that we spend more time examining our own calling and ministry focus, rather than wasting any time on schoolboy chatter. There is a world to reach, a gospel to preach, and a final day coming for us all in which only one question will matter: Were you faithful in fulfilling your calling?
