Jesus strongly forbade titles of honour for shepherds of His Congregation, yet every major denominational branch of Christendom employs them. Why?
"But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers.
Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ." Matthew 23:8-10
Evangelicals are extremely familiar with this passage; or as least with verse 9, which they bludgeon Roman Catholics with for the title of "Father." Ironically, Evangelicals are oblivious to the fact that Jesus forbade all titles of honour here, including "Minister," "Pastor," and "Reverend."
There is nothing wrong with being known as a teacher or a shepherd or an apostle, but we are not to bestow such titles upon people in order to show honour. We are not to elevate anyone above anyone else. Many such people in positions of authority will argue that you should simply because they desire such honour, but Jesus was against it, which means these people are against Jesus.
Not once in Scripture do you see people addressed as Apostle So-and-so or Disciple So-and-so or Prophet So-and-so. Instead, you see them addressed by their names only. It is not "Pastor So-and-so"; it is simply "So-and-so."
Look at the context of the above passage. How does it begin?
"Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, saying: "The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men."" Matthew 23:1-7
The leaders of Israel (1) seated themselves in the chair of Moses, taking authority unto themselves; (2) tied heavy burdens and placed them upon the peoples' shoulders; (3) performed deeds solely to be noticed by and praised by men; (4) love the place of honour at events; (5) love the best seats in the house; and (6) love respectful greetings in the markets. They were very egotistical and filled with pride. If they had a PhD, they would remind people to call them "Doctor So-and-so," despite knowing nothing of medicine. They yearn for the honour and praise of men while ignoring the approval of God.
Jesus continues by saying,
"But the greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted." Matthew 23:11-12
Jesus teaches His disciples concerning proper attitude. The greatest among us should be our servant. Elsewhere He says that the greatest among us must be like the youngest member of the family. What authority does a servant have? What authority does the youngest member of the family have? Biblical shepherds are to be servants, not authoritarian dictatorial tyrants on power trips.
Jesus then launches into eight (8) woes pronounced against the Jewish leaders:
"But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut off the kingdom of heaven from people; for you do not enter in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
Woe to you, blind guides, who say, 'Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.' You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold? And, 'Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing, but whoever swears by the offering on it, he is obligated.' You blind men, which is more important, the offering, or the altar that sanctifies the offering? Therefore, whoever swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it. And whoever swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells within it. And whoever swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence. You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may become clean also.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men's bones and all uncleanness. So you, too, outwardly appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and adorn the monuments of the righteous, and say, 'If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.' So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets. Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers." Matthew 23:13-32
The phrase "son of hell" uses the word γεεννησ, which was a reference to the Valley of Gehinnom, which was Jerusalem's garbage dump. It was apparently visible from the city and burned day and night. Ergo, Jesus was saying that the Jewish leaders and their disciples were sons of a garbage dump. Could there be a greater insult to one's teachings?
Jesus was not mild mannered when He addressed titles of honour; He was angry! And rightfully so. We all know that there is a bond between pride and titles of honour. Men are puffed up with titles of honour, and lust after the praise of men because of their titles. This goes for having the alphabet before or after your name. Most men who study to become "wise and intelligent" often turn into ignorant, arrogant fools who are blinded by their own education, degrees, and titles. This is why God is opposed to them. Observe Jesus' words elsewhere:
"Calling them to Himself, Jesus said to them, "You know that those who are recognized as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them; and their great men exercise authority over them. But it is not this way among you, but whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many." Mark 10:42-45
Everyone in Christendom knows that "it is more blessed to give then to receive," but how many sermons have you heard that rightly point out that the context of this statement has to do with leaders working with their own two hands for their own income? Observe:
"I have coveted no one's silver or gold or clothes. You yourselves know that these hands ministered to my own needs and to the men who were with me. In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'" Acts 20:33-35
The context here is Paul summoning the Ephesian elders to himself while he was in Miletus (the elders that existed in Ephesus 5 or 6 years before Paul wrote his letters to Timothy) and informing them that he provided himself as an example for them to follow.
When you adopt titles of honour for yourself, are you disciples of the apostles, or of the Pharisees? Have you inherited the traditions of Jesus and the apostles, or the traditions of the Pharisees? Are shepherds and teachers only supposed to teach with words, like the Pharisees, or are they to teach by example, like Jesus and the apostles? Could you imagine if the leaders of your organized religious institutions sat among you and behaved even remotely like Jesus did? All the New Testament Scriptures are opposed to honouring and showing partiality to specific people. We are to treat all people as equals.