donquijote1954 said:Since it's pretty much settled that Jesus would have ridden a bike,
let's debate now what the Devil would have driven...
David V. said:donquijote1954 said:I thought he drove an SUV. 😉
Quoted message said:"The Devil" does not exist. But you do remind me of Don Quixote.
His SUV polluted too.
DonQuixote rode a horse, Rocinante, and Sancho rode a donkey, like
Jesus.
The Devil does not exist but Christians are often found doing evil
things. I have no doubt in my mind though that the Devil would have
driven an SUV if he existed.
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLEhttp://webspawner.com/users/donquijote
The devil probably rides a bicycle from time to time. Perhaps this
could happen by his assuming human form and engaging in whatever
activity is conducive, at the moment, to lead a person into sin, which
could include riding a bike. Or it could happen via demonic
possession. Consider this summary from the Catholic Encyclopedia:
"Assuming the reality of demoniac possession, for which the authority
of Christ is pledged, it is to be observed that Jesus appealed to His
power over demons as one of the recognised signs of Messiahship
(Matthew 12:23, 28; Luke 11:20). He cast out demons, He declared, by
the finger or spirit of God, not, as His adversaries alleged, by
collusion with the prince of demons (Matthew 12:24, 27; Mark 3:22;
Luke 11:15, 19); and that He exercised no mere delegated power, but a
personal authority that was properly His own, is clear from the direct
and imperative way in which He commands the demon to depart (Mark
9:24; cf. 1:25 etc.): "He cast out the spirits with his word, and he
healed all that were sick" (Matthew 8:16). Sometimes, as with the
daughter of the Canaanean woman, the exorcism took place from a
distance (Matthew 15:22 sqq.; Mark 7:25). Sometimes again the spirits
expelled were allowed to express their recognition of Jesus as "the
Holy One of God" (Mark 1:24) and to complain that He had come to
torment them "before the time", i.e the time of their punishment
(Matthew 8:29 sqq; Luke 8:28 sqq.). If demoniac possession was
generally accompanied by some disease, yet the two were not confounded
by Christ, or the Evangelists. In Luke 13:32, for example, the Master
Himself expressly distinguishes between the expulsion of evil spirits
and the curing of disease.
Christ also empowered the Apostles and Disciples to cast out demons in
His name while He Himself was still on earth (Matthew 10:1 and 8; Mark
6:7; Luke 9:1; 10:17), and to believers generally He promised the same
power (Mark 16:17). But the efficacy of this delegated power was
conditional, as we see from the fact that the Apostles themselves were
not always successful in their exorcisms: certain kinds of spirits, as
Christ explained, could only be cast out by prayer and fasting
(Matthew 17:15, 20; Mark 9:27-28; Luke 9:40). In other words the
success of exorcism by Christians, in Christ's name, is subject to the
same general conditions on which both the efficacy of prayer and the
use of charismatic power depend. Yet conspicuous success was promised
(Mark 16:17). St. Paul (Acts 16:18; 19:12), and, no doubt, the other
Apostles and Disciples, made use of regularly, as occasion arose, of
their exorcising power, and the Church has continued to do so
uninterruptedly to the present day."
Demonic possession isn't widely reported these days but that doesn't
mean it doesn't happen. Too often people think that if they didn't
hear about it in the mainstream media, it didn't happen. Anyway
demoniacs can carry on all the normal activities of daily life, and
that surely includes riding a bike.
