Michigan Conference Ministerial Retreat

<p>Free sharing permitted under the Creative Commons <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/">BY-NC-ND 3.0 (US)</a> license.</p>

Michigan Conference of Seventh-day Adventists

Experiencing Righteousness Through Faith in Christ

P. Gerard Damsteegt

1. Experiencing of Righteousness by Faith in Christ

2. Power of the Word Brings the Righteousness of Christ

3. How the First Angel’s Message Prepares for the Second Advent

4. How to Prepare for When Michael Stands Up

5. The Mind of Christ and the Impending Conflict

6. The Faith of Jesus and the Final Crisis

Lord, may the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be fully acceptable in your sight and give us the Holy Spirit in Jesus' name.

I decided to give a little of my background.

You see I come from the country of the windmills.

And we had a happy family until the age of 10.

My father was an ardent mountaineer until he fell in a ravine, and he was at the age of 10.

So I was with my mother and myself, and then later on we got my children, my sister, and here I grew up as a teenager without a father.

You may pity me, but maybe that was good because I was free to do whatever I wanted.

Don't worry about this guy." And so she also died at the age of 10.

And every year when I visit Holland, I pay my respect to that place.

And of course I have a strong will, and frequently my mother had to succumb and gave me the freedom.

And so I browsed in many, many sources, religions, and at the age of 15 I was an existentialist.

I went to the Amsterdam to the Midnight Concerts that started at 12 and went to 3.

But then the Lord touched me because of 1 book that I found in our book library.

And that book was called Our Day in the Light of Bible Prophecy, W.A.

And I had been taught from home that you challenge everything, and if it is good and true, run with this.

Here I tested the prophecies, and everything happened to be fulfilled.

Yes, at that time I was studying at the School of aeronautics, wanted to be an aeronautical engineer.

And so I didn't have too much time to explore those prophetic pictures, because you know busy with school and whatever you want to do well.

And then I finished that, and then I was drafted into the Royal Dutch Air Force, and there I had more time.

Because in the Air Force and in the army, you waste a lot of time.

You know, fighting and mock battles and those kind of things.

And I always enjoyed discussing things and We had their spiritual formation.

You had to go either to the chaplain of the Catholics or the Protestants.

The Catholics brought dancing and women, and the Protestants had serious discussions.

And I told the chaplain, why doesn't he teach us that we should as Christians not anymore continue in the Air Force?

Because the Bible says, thou shalt not kill.

And so he was really annoyed with some of those things.

Then 1 day there was a special session with all our guys there together and the topic was, what can you do as Christians on Sunday?

Suddenly I recalled, I read in this book about the Sunday law and that Sunday was not biblical and that you can do for Sunday whatever you want.

And So at the end of this discussion, the chaplain asked, is there anyone here in the audience who has anything to contribute?

So I couldn't stop, but jump up and went to the front, and in the next 15-20 minutes, everything what I still could recall of Bible prophecy and Daniel 7 and Revelation whatever was there still I shared.

And so the chaplain said, you know, friends, what this gentleman says, much is true, but we are running out of time, so let's pray.

So my fellow people in the Air Force said, Domstie, we are sick and tired that you continue to harass us and tell us what we need to do, and you are not even a Christian.

You shut up, or you follow what you say to us.

So, at that time, Providence put a card in my hand and it was an invitation from the voice of prophecy to take Bible studies.

So I said I need more ammunition to discuss my fellows and the chaplain and so I wrote on and I took the course.

And so friends, I decided, What am I going to do with the rest of my life?

Shall I go in the aeronautics and make lots of money, travel the world, fly around?

Judgment is already here, and who knows about it?

So I went to Edmund's pastor asking him to give me some more Bible studies and said, how can I now learn this beautiful message?

Yes, yes, we have a school, we have a school.

He says, no, you're not even being baptized.

Oh, I said, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter.

Yes, yes, yes, and so they gave me a briefcase with books.

Says, there are all the people that need to hear the message.

If you are successful in canvassing, the Lord has called you.

So I left the Air Force and there I had my books.

The first week, the first day actually, I sold 8 magazines.

In 1 week, The Lord allowed me to break all the records of canvassing in Holland.

I gave up at existentialism and Adventism brought me the woman of my life.

I dated around, couldn't find anybody until I met her.

And that was the end of my dating experience.

Actually, I got first my doctorate because I got my doctorate, and the reason why I studied my doctorate is because I wanted to become a pastor.

But I read in LNY that the best ministerial talent needs to be an excellent pastor, and then you should teach.

So the General Conference gave me opportunities to go to that university, or go to the Philippines, or whatever.

But I said, this is what the Spirit of Prophecy says.

Oh, Domsic, don't worry about it, you know.

We need to do accreditation, you know, remember all those degrees and whatever.

I said, I'm not interested in accreditation.

And so I became a pastor in Potomac Conference.

Series

Experiencing Righteousness Through Faith in Christ

1. Experiencing of Righteousness by Faith in Christ

Transcript

Parent Series

Parent Conference

Sponsor

Recorded

Praying While Waiting For an Answer

1h

GYC SE 2011 Seminar: Devotional Life

The Undoing of the Saints: A Testimony

43m

Women's Ordination Symposium

7- Straw Man Arguments in Favor of Women’s Ordination

56m

Colossians

Things From Above

47m

Experience Versus Scripture

38m

You’re Being Conditioned for a Lie

31m

Heaven Is For Real

42m

Emerging Church Symposium

Overturning Sola Scriptura - Part 2

1h 12m

Christianity 24-7

1. Buried Alive

1h 15m

The Book of James

The Book of James: The Perfecting of Our Faith

58m

Faith and Works

Faith and Works - Part 1

23m

Adventist Culture or Adventist Faith?

51m

Sound Doctrine