In Christianity Today, Mark Galli questions the grandiose aspirations of many Christians:
We recall verses like this: “Go and make disciples of all nations … ” and “You are to be my witnesses in all the world … .” So we make the leap of faith and start preaching, “We’ve got to change the world!”
We are certainly responsible for going to the ends of the earth and making disciples from people of every nation. There is plenty in Scripture about doing justice and loving mercy and feeding the hungry and caring for the widow and orphan. But I find little or nothing about us having the task of transforming the culture.
We fall into this rhetoric because we know the problems we face are huge and we feel so small. We worry that if we don’t boldly proclaim that we can “change the world,” everybody will give up before we even begin. We all face the common temptation of Adam and Eve. We want to feel significant. We want to feel like we’re players. We want to make a difference in the world. And only by imagining that we can change the world do we think our actions have any meaning.
Instead, Galli says our focus should be on the much smaller “world” where God has specifically placed each one of us:
To be sure, he says we can be “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” As such, we can indeed give the world a glimpse of kingdom life so that many will give glory to God (Matt. 5:12-14). But there’s nothing there about the world being transformed. What Jesus wants us to do primarily, it seems, is to love those right in front of our noses.
It’s worth reading the whole article.