"How does one esteem another and not think of yourself as beneath them?" (1 Thessalonians 5:12-14). This question exposes a common misunderstanding of the function of authority. To esteem means to appreciate, admire, respect, have regard for the person or item being esteemed. It does not mean degrading or devaluing yourself.
If you go to an art museum and see a masterpiece, you may enjoy the painting and admire the talent of the artist, but you do not naturally think the painting or the artist as more valuable than yourself. If you need your car repaired, you value the honest and skillful mechanic but you do not naturally feel the man or woman has a greater right to live than you. The same could be said of electricians, professors, hair stylist, gardeners, doctors and any other professions. We recognize their talent and our need for their expertise. We show them respect as individuals and as someone we need.
So also we respect the leaders in the church. God has given them the ministry of teaching. He has given us different gifts. God designed that we need one another. In all this God alone is to be glorified.
