12
In the same way, Aaron's descendant Eleazar, though eaten up by fire, kept his thinking straight.
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The most remarkable thing is that he became young again in spirit through clear thinking, though he was an old man whose body was no longer hard and strong—his muscles were soft, and his joints were weak. He made the many devices of torture ineffective with clear thinking, such as Isaac had shown.
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How honorable is old age, respected gray hair, and a law-abiding life that the faithful seal of death made complete!
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So if an old man thought nothing of being tortured to death for the sake of showing God proper respect, without question godly thinking is the commander of the emotions.
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Some people might object, "Not everyone has command of the emotions, since not everyone uses wisdom."
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But the people who are fully committed to give God proper respect from the heart are alone able to control the sensations of the body.
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This is because they believe that they don't die to God but rather continue to live for God like the ancestors of our nation, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
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So there is no contradiction in the fact that some people seem to be completely controlled by their emotions because of weak thinking.
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If a person lives by the complete rule of philosophy, trusts God,
22
and knows that it is a privilege to suffer anything for the sake of their moral character, that person will be able to control the emotions through godly practice.