“In every place of worship, I want men to pray with holy hands lifted up to God, free from anger and controversy. And I want women to be modest in their appearance. They should wear decent and appropriate clothing and not draw attention to themselves by the way they fix their hair or by wearing gold or pearls or expensive clothes. For women who claim to be devoted to God should make themselves attractive by the good things they do.”
Throughout the years, there have been several moments at our church when someone became a distraction. One man stood in an aisle and flipped off the Pastor while he preached. Another week someone decided to get up and greet each person in the front row while the Pastor preached. Each time something like this happens, I walk the person out of the auditorium and we have a short conversation. During that conversation I want to make one thing very clear: church is a place where Jesus is the center of attention. No one gets to act in any way that distracts the rest of the church from Jesus.
That is the essence of what Paul is writing here. When people are trying to focus on worshipping God, there shouldn’t be distractions. Paul lists several potential distractions. Men should avoid causing distraction through “anger” or “controversy.” Women should avoid causing distraction through “their appearance.” Beyond these specifics, however, is an important principle. Every follower of Jesus is responsible for helping to create a distraction-free environment for everyone one else who is trying to worship Jesus.
Here’s your freedom for today: worshipping God together is dynamically powerful. Each of us has the power to help everyone else to worship. We do this by how we dress and how we act when we arrive at church. We do this through our posture and our attitude during church services. We do this especially through how we relate to others. When we choose to give our full attention and effort to encountering God through the service, we not only help ourselves, but we help everyone else around us. The inverse is also true. If you are ever having a hard time connecting with God, go find a giant crowd of people who are wholeheartedly worshipping. If you let it, their passion and attitude will rub off.