Another one of the Corinthian church errors is lovingly being exposed in this passage. Their thinking about leadership (christian leadership) is back to front. They are taking pride in one leader over another. Paul warns them that such thinking is dangerous, and he uses the a number of images to show how foolish this thinking is. One image is that their leaders are not kings at the front of a victory parade but the down trodden condemned men at the end of the procession. The second image is that leaders are not the prized possession people treasure but rather the scum of the earth. Both images display the foolishness of taking pride in one piece of rubbish over another. The great one is the God they serve and it is important to remain humble before Him. The problem with taking pride in one leader over another is that it flows into your own assessment of yourself and that you are now far more able to take pride in yourself over others - this is a grave danger. We need leaders and people who follow them as humble servants of God, not going beyond what is written