Will Durant, in his book The Story of Civilization, spoke extensively about revolutions. He wrote, “The only real revolution is the revolution of the individual. The only real revolutionists are the philosophers and the saints.” What an insight! He was saying to us that violent revolutions do not redistribute the wealth; they just destroy the wealth. Advocates of violent revolutions deal only with the externals of humanity and society but never really get to the heart of the issue. A person's basic problem is his heart. It is out of the heart (the moral, spiritual, and intellectual center) that evil comes. To measurably change society you must seek to change a person's heart and not just his economics, social habits, and environment.
Changing people is the work of the philosopher and the saint! They deal with ideals, values, and truth. They seek to change others one by one. Changing men and women will ultimately lead to a change in everything these changed people touch. But people are not changed as groups. They are changed individually.
This is why Jesus Christ is the greatest revolutionary of all time. His basic concern is with individuals—one by one. As he changes and empowers others he thus can change the world. To be sure, it doesn’t seem as fast and it doesn’t seem as spectacular as a violent revolution, but in the long run history bears it out—that’s the best way for change to come.
Do you long to see society changed? Do you desire to make America a better place to live? Let Christ change your life by his love and grace, and then give yourself to the work of introducing others to him. You will do more lasting good than all the radicals alive.