Matthew 23:15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you go about the sea and the dry land to make one proselyte; and when he has become so, you make him twofold more a son of Hell than yourselves.”

The God's Word Translation says the above text this way,

"How horrible it will be for you, scribes and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You cross land and sea to recruit a single follower, and when you do, you make that person twice as fit for hell as you are."

The idea of this text is that the scribes and Pharisees would search everywhere for people who would allow themselves to be shaped and molded into the ways of the scribes and Pharisees. Unfortunately any prejudices, false teachings, or traditional practices were taught to the recruit, and as what commonly happens, the recruit outdid their teachers. They learned the prejudices of their teachers and in their zealousness as a new convert, became even more prejudice and harsher towards those around them. A good example of this is Saul, who later changed his name to Paul. He was taught by Gamaliel. Acts 5:34-35, 38-40 shows Gamaliel with a wait and see kind of attitude.

"But a Pharisee named Gamaliel stood up. He was a highly respected expert in Moses' Teachings. He ordered that the apostles should be taken outside for a little while. Then he said to the council, "Men of Israel, consider carefully what you do with these men."

"We should keep away from these men for now. We should leave them alone. I can guarantee that if the plan they put into action is of human origin, it will fail. However, if it's from God, you won't be able to stop them. You may even discover that you're fighting against God." The council took his advice. They called the apostles, beat them, ordered them not to speak about the one named Jesus, and let them go."

Acts 22:3 introduces Gamaliel as Paul's teacher. "I'm a Jew. I was born and raised in the city of Tarsus in Cilicia and received my education from Gamaliel here in Jerusalem. My education was in the strict rules handed down by our ancestors. I was as devoted to God as all of you are today."

Paul didn't have that same wait and see attitude. He went after Christians and killed them. He was very zealous in following his teacher. Fortunately for Paul, he met the true and perfect Teacher on the road to Damascus.

Acts 22:6-8 "But as I was on my way and approaching the city of Damascus about noon, a bright light from heaven suddenly flashed around me. I fell to the ground and heard a voice asking me, 'Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?' "I answered, 'Who are you, sir?' "The person told me, 'I'm Jesus from Nazareth, the one you're persecuting.'"

Paul's life was turned completely around. Instead of pouring his zealousness into killing Christians, he became zealous for spreading the word about Jesus and the salvation His death on the cross offers everyone who accepts it.

Anyone in a leadership or teaching position should make sure no one ever views them as something more than an average human working for God. They should never allow the admiration of others. The admiration should constantly be redirected towards God. Likewise, the person who is learning from a church leader or teacher should never think of that leader or teacher as anything more than an average person who feels called by God. It's good to respect any schooling they have and to respect their leadership role, but no admiration for the person themselves. All admiration, adoration, and reverence belongs to God. The person who keeps their focus on God will be sure to treat others with God given love and compassion. They will not adopt the prejudices and man-made rules or traditions of someone else. They will only follow the teaching of Jesus and let Him lead in their lives.