Hello, this is Paul Scharf here for Whitcomb Ministries. We're glad you're joining us on sermonaudio.com and on our Whitcomb Ministries pages here. I'm here today with Dr. John Whitcomb. We're sitting at his desk. Dr. Whitcomb, this morning we're going to talk about a very special theme, and that is remembering Dr. Henry Morris, who, as you make this recording, passed away one month ago today on Saturday, February 25th. And that was after complications that had developed from a stroke that he had had on February 1st. And Dr. Whitcomb, you had a very special part in the funeral and time with the family out there at the Institute for Creation Research. after Dr. Morris' passing, and I'd like to just ask you to share some of those experiences with the listeners today and give us sort of an inside view as to some of your experiences and thoughts here in remembering Dr. Henry Morris. As we will be discussing, friends, on a separate occasion, Henry Morris was one of my four fathers. in the realm of creation science. He introduced me to magnificent concepts I had never realized, even though I was already teaching the book of Genesis in a theological seminary. That was back in 1953. And then we cooperated, of course, in the co-authoring of the Genesis flood book published in 1961. And as Dr. Morris and I both agree, That was a vast change in our lives, our priorities, our schedules, and opportunities to make known the wonders of God's Word and the glory of Jesus Christ, the Creator and the Redeemer of men around the world. In the later years, of course, I saw Henry beginning to back off from heavy schedules of traveling and speaking. And it was in 1995, just about ten and a half years ago now, that I gave the message on the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Institute of Creation Research in California and the retirement of Dr. Morris as the founding president, as he turned over the leadership to his son, John Morris, who has been an outstanding successor to his father. Then, of course, in 2003, just about three years ago now, I had the privilege also of being in California with Henry Morris to provide a response to alternative views on the book of Genesis. We called this panel discussion After Eden, and it was a wonderful opportunity for Henry Morris and myself and his son and some other scientists to really think through the whole issue of how we're to interpret the early chapters of Genesis in the light of the entire Word of God. We had that opportunity to sit down together by a fireside. We call that Fireside Chats in which Henry and I reminisced over the 50 years we had spent together in creation science work and co-authoring books and so on. We're thankful that that's available as a DVD now. Well, time went on, and of course, little did he know, little did I know, or any of us know, that instead of living to be 100 or 90 serving the Lord, God called him home at the age of 87, where he went to be with his Lord on February the 25th, just about a month ago, at 2006. I was absolutely astonished to hear the word that he had died. The stroke he was able to handle remarkably, though in a wheelchair. He could still think clearly and write and so forth, but one night in his sleep, God took him. Now, I was so touched to find in my mailbox recently a copy of his newly revised Defenders Bible that he autographed the very day, February 1st, that he had his stroke. The previous year he had graciously autographed 17 copies of our Genesis flood book that I have set aside for our 17 grandchildren. Just like Henry had 17 grandchildren, so did we. And he had 6 children and so did we. And so we have shared through the years in our families from time to time as well. Well, I flew to San Diego. I was completing a conference in Atlanta. I flew to San Diego at their invitation to participate in this marvelous testimony to the power and glory of our Lord Jesus Christ in memory of Henry Morris. And I was welcomed and hosted by Donald Rohrer, a faithful member of the ICR staff, Institute for Creation Research. The day of the funeral was indeed a spectacular day. I was asked to speak to give a tribute to Dr. Morris. after Henry Morris III, his older son, and then John Morris, his successor in the leadership of ICR, brought words of welcome and memories, I brought a tribute, only about 10 or 15 minutes, emphasizing the amazing dedication of Henry Morris to the whole counsel of God in the Bible. Not just a single focus ministry on Genesis, but a comprehensive approach to the whole Word of God, including the thousand-year kingdom that's coming, where there will be exemplified visibly, publicly, spectacularly, something of what the world was like at the beginning. Animals, again, at peace, harmless, beautiful, like they were at the beginning of the world. And how he emphasized this, for example, in his commentary on the book of Revelation. and also in his Defender's Bible, now the revised edition, just off the press in time for him to see it before he died. Then we had in addition to the funeral, and I should add that the other speakers for the funeral were Tim LaHaye, who helped Henry Morris in the establishment of the Institute for Creation Research back in 1970 in California, and a final message by Henry Morris III. It looked to me like we had nearly a thousand people in the audience. What an opportunity, of course, to bond together with creation science leaders from all over America, some of whom I hadn't seen in years, and some of whom I had really hardly even met or gotten acquainted with or their wives, just to sort of shake a hand, bond a heart and a mind in a recommitment to the things that Henry Morris stood for and that God used him to inaugurate as the, well he wouldn't want to be called this, but he is generally recognized as the father of the modern creation science movement. And so to meet with these people, who are dedicated to exploring, studying, researching, writing about, lecturing about these things on how the world began, was a personal blessing and encouragement to me. In addition to that, I was interviewed twice, videotaped interviews of my perspectives, some of the things I'm just mentioning now, and other things too. And then also, amazingly, a reporter from the New York Times. phoned the ICR headquarters and asked to interview me for my perspectives on Henry Morris. And many, many newspapers nationwide gave tribute in one way or another to Henry Morris, a man of gigantic stature in the whole 20th century and 21st century in the revival of creationism. Perhaps some of you have even seen through the answers in Genesis. And they were represented by Ken Ham and some of his people there at the funeral. The great tsunami that the Genesis flood book created that is threatening to demolish the sand castle of evolutionism. Dan Leatha of AIG produced this cartoon. And we just say, well, thank you, Lord, for using this tiny pebble in the sling of a David to fling at the forehead of a Goliath, namely evolutionism, and how God mercifully used that for His glory and for His purposes in this generation. Well, it was very precious to be included the next day with the immediate family at the funeral home and to reminisce again on Henry's life and its significance for those of us who were there. I took the opportunity to tell the people, the family, how amazed and thankful I was that he, Henry Morris, though not a professional theologian, he was not a graduate of a theological seminary, he was not an expert in exegesis and hermeneutics and systematic theology as such, but he was a genius. He was a self-taught theologian. and expositor of the Word of God. And he did far more than many so-called professional theologians. And I had to admit my shame at the realization that across America and around the world, professional theologians, even those who are evangelical Christians, have not made a contribution comparable to his in defending, explaining, illuminating, and enforcing the clear teachings of the book of Genesis on how the world began. So I say, well, thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord, for the little part you gave me in that great funeral out there in San Diego area. And I just say, Lord, Moses is gone. Where's Joshua? help us to follow through what was begun by your mercy and to realize that that kingdom that Henry Morris loved to think about could be coming sooner than we realize. In fact, on his office wall was a plaque for 60 years. It said this, perhaps today, perhaps today. Yes, Jesus told the people of Israel in his day, you pray this prayer. Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Perhaps today, dear friends, the events will begin that will inaugurate the kingdom of Jesus Christ and then the knowledge of the Lord will cover the earth as the waters cover the sea. May God encourage our hearts to move ahead for Him and to be faithful like Henry Morris who could really say, I have fought the good fight I have finished the course, I have kept the faith, and henceforth there is laid up for me a crown, a crown, dear friends, that God offers to all those who are faithful, faithful servants of His until the end.