From Uncle Tom

Have you ever read Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin? I just finished it myself. It was written back in 1852 as an anti-slavery story. The title character was a slave named, of course, Tom. And it seems as if many of our nasty stereotypes came from this book.

The book has been panned by more recent critics. It is riddled, of course, with the "N" word because, as it turns out, the word used to be used regularly and in polite company as it is today among the African American community in use about each other. Offensive. But the worst thing was Uncle Tom. Tom was a strange character. There was George and Eliza--abused, runaway slaves heading to Canada for freedom. There was Cassy and Emmeline--abused, runaway slaves heading north to freedom. There were cruel slave characters abusing fellow slaves. But then there was Tom. Tom was a devout Christian. He believed, of all things, that God was looking out for him, so he bore up under the trials and difficulties. He always tried to do the best he could for his owners and their families and their slaves. Even under the stereotyplical "ultimate evil", Simon Legree who ended up beating Tom to death, Tom did what was right, relying on God to sustain him. It was this character that modern critics didn't like because he was too kind, too willing to serve, too obsequious.

By today's standards, Tom was too servile. He allowed his owner to beat him to death in order to stand for what was right. To me Tom was one of the most heroic characters you'll ever find. That's not because he was submissive. It's because Tom so trusted his Savior. To Tom, knowing Christ was everything. When Tom considered his very real hardships in comparison to Christ on the cross, his were minor. When Tom asked, "Why does God allow me to suffer like this?", he found his simple answer in "He allowed His own Son to suffer worse." When Tom was weak, he found that God's grace was sufficient (2 Cor 12:9). Tom dies in the end, but as he dies he exults in the opportunity to be with his Savior in glory.

I get that we don't live in that world anymore. God is not in vogue. Trusting in Christ is not in fashion. Turning the other cheek, serving others, considering others as more important than oneself (Phil 2:3), these characteristics aren't at all popular, even admirable. So Christians often join the world in their push to "get what's mine", to "demand my rights", to avoid being wronged. I would suggest, however, that the Uncle Tom character more epitomizes Christ and His disciples than the common current Christian in America.

I want to be more like Tom. In the way that Tom imitated Christ, I want to be like Tom. Most of all, I want the confidence in my Savior that gives a supernatural stand in the face of tyranny and persecution. I want to forgive those who despitefully use me and serve those in my vicinity, all empowered by God who is at work in me (Phil 2:13). Because the God I serve is love and power and perfection. Shouldn't I live like it?