Probably since forever, people have grumbled about their pay. Looking at your pay stub and noticing all the deductions is enough to get under anyone’s skin. However, there is a discrepancy in pay that has been an ongoing fight for years. Today is National Equal Pay Day which began in 1996 to highlight that men were paid more than women in the workforce for doing the exact same job. While statistics and studies show that the pay gap is decreasing, it is still not equal.
“While the observance is only a couple of decades old, the fight for equal pay has been going on for nearly a century. Early in the 20th century, women in the United States and around the world began taking a stand. They demanded fair pay and better working conditions, voting rights, and legal rights.”1
Sadly, American history demonstrates that women have often been treated as little more than chattel. They were expected to cook, clean, and be available to their man’s lusts and desires whenever he demanded. This goes contrary to God’s elevation of women and His instructions for how the woman should be treated.
From the beginning, we are told in Genesis 1:27, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.” And 1 Peter 3:7 reminds us, “Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered.”
God’s Word teaches a love, honor, and respect for all and the gentle, kind, and loving treatment of women, particularly wives. It is only in a secular world and by worldly standards that women – or anyone else for that matter – are treated poorly.
During WWI, WW2, and the Industrial Revolution, more women entered the workforce out of necessity. However, their pay was significantly lower than if a man had been available to do the job. While the pay gap has been closing, women are still paid about 88% of what a man is paid.
Let me be clear where I stand on this. If a person performs the job better, they ought to be paid better. It should have absolutely nothing to do with gender or ethnicity. You may argue that a person has more experience, longevity, or better education, therefore they should make more money. That, though, doesn’t necessarily make them perform better. Longevity with a Ph.D doesn’t automatically make you a better worker. Sometimes, just the opposite. I’ve seen it make people entitled and lazy. That kind of behavior should not be rewarded with higher pay.
The great equalizer of all things is the Gospel. Galatians 3:26-29 says, “For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. (27) For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. (28) There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. (29) And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” God is not valuing us based on the color of our skin, our nationality, or our gender. He values us as His creation for whom His Son, Jesus, died on a cross. We become family and God doesn’t love me more than He loves you.
While discrepancies and inequities will always exist in the world where Satan is the “prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2) and the “god of this world” (2 Corinthians 4:4), may we seek to treat all men (and women) as equals with love, respect, and honor. We need to model this from the family of God and let our light shine before mankind.
Take to heart Paul’s words in Romans 12:9-10. “Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. (10) Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another.”
1https://www.nationaldaycalendar.com/march/national-equal-pay-day-changes-annually
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