"Over You in the Lord"

"Know them who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord,
and admonish you, and to esteem them very

highly in love for their work’s sake."
Paul, in 1Thessalonian 5:12-13

"Remember them who have the rule over you,
who have spoken to you the word of God, whose faith follow . . . .
Obey those who have the rule over you, and submit yourselves,
for they watch for your souls, as they who must give account . . . ."
Hebrews 13:7, 17

Sometimes, people are uncertain as to who really is "over them in the Lord". They are willing to do as Paul said to do toward elders in the faith, but they don’t know for sure whose faith to follow, whose admonishments they should receive (false teachers sometimes admonish saints for doing right), and whom "to esteem very highly in love for their work’s sake." God’s humble people want to know whose faith to follow and whose teaching to receive. It is easy to find out who is President of the country, or Governor of the state, or Mayor of the city, and so forth. Everyone in the world seems to know what the laws are, even if they break them. But God’s children want to know who is who in Christ, whose commandments to obey and whose authority to submit to, in the kingdom of God.

Here is one way you can always tell who is "over you in the Lord": Whoever is over you in the Lord is genuinely happier for you to be blessed than you are yourself.