This is merely a way that we can follow the example of Jesus. We were the ones who sinned against Him and He initiated forgiveness and restoration by an act of grace beyond comprehension. Let's mirror that toward others. | Mike Winger

In my experience, many people misunderstand the weight of this point. They do not deal in a straightforward manner with the fact that Paul's teaching here requires that normal Christians (not a special class of clergy, bishop, or pope) be able to reason and compare what every potential authority may say (including angels or even apostles) with what is known for certain to be the prior teaching of the apostles. The only place that content is found for sure, in the current day, is in the text of S