Sexism is Alive and Well in the 21st Century

I was watching TV the other day with my family, and a commercial for Klondike ice cream bars came on. Most of you are probably familiar with the jingle for Klondike bars that sings, “What would you do for a Klondike bar?” In the past these commercials have shown people doing rather silly things for a Klondike bar, but times have changed.

In this commercial we are told that it will be Mark vs. actually listening to his wife for five seconds that will merit him the reward of a Klondike bar. I was absolutely appalled! The commercial shows Mark and his wife sitting on the couch with Mark looking at his wife with a painful expression as he listens to her for a whole five seconds. Then when time is up two attractive women in tight, short dresses appear to help him celebrate his “victory.”

What a worldly, stereotypical portrayal of women. I certainly don’t want my daughter and other young girls believing that what women think and say is unimportant. Nor do I want young boys believing that what women think and say is meaningless and focusing instead on a woman’s outward beauty. However, we must realize this is the result of starting with mankind’s authority and not God’s authority and His Word.

Darwin and many of his contemporaries believed that women were not as evolved as men, since they stayed in the home. Men, on the other hand, competed with each other in the outside world (survival of the fittest) leading to higher levels of evolution. Even in the time of Christ women were considered unsuitable for education and denied many rights given to men. Unfortunately, although much has changed, this commercial shows us that much has stayed the same.

But the Bible is the great equalizer when it comes to men and women. Both men and women are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26–27) and later, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote that male and female are one in Christ (Galatians 3:28). Jesus even selected women to be the first ones to see Him after His resurrection and to tell the good news to His disciples! (Matthew 28, John 20) Paul gave specific instructions to husbands to love their wives as Christ loved the church—to the point of giving His life for it (Ephesians 5:25). Mark, from the Klondike commercial, would certainly treat his wife much differently if he started with God’s Word as the authority in his life.

May this be a reminder to all of us as we watch TV, movies, and other forms of entertainment with our family (even the commercials) to be discerning and teach our children to be discerning. Let’s teach our children the importance of starting with God’s Word as the ultimate authority so they will have a correct view of God’s world.