![astray? Nay, it was finding the lost sheep.[17] What gave joy to the
woman's heart? Was it the nine pieces in her possession? Nay, it was
finding the one lost piece. What gave joy to the father's heart? Was
it the service and the obedience of the elder son? Nay, it was getting
back his lost son. A repentant, broken-hearted, returning sinner
wakens up heaven's joy. "Let us eat and be merry." Why? Because
the elder son has been working in the fields and doing his duty? No;
but "This my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is
found."
All this is perfectly wonderful. Indeed, it is so wonderful that if we
had it not from the lips of Him who is the Truth, and on the eternal
page of divine inspiration, we could not believe it. But, blessed be
God, there it stands, and none can gainsay it. There shines the
glorious truth that a poor, self-convicted, broken-hearted, penitent,
though hell-deserving sinner, gives joy to the heart of God. Let
people talk as they will about keeping the law and doing their duty:
it may go for what it is worth; but be it remembered there is no such
clause within the covers of the volume of God—no such sentence
ever dropped from the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ as "There is joy
in heaven over one sinner that does his duty."
A sinner's duty! What is it? "God commandeth all men everywhere to
repent." What is it that can really define our duty? Surely the divine
command. Well, here it is, and there is no getting over it. God's
command to all men, in every place, is to repent. His commandment
binds them to do it; His goodness leads them to it; His judgment
warns them to it; and, above all, and most marvelous of all, He
assures us that our repentance gives joy to His heart. A penitent
heart is an object of profoundest interest to the mind of God,
because that heart is morally prepared to receive what God delights
to bestow, namely, "remission of sins"—yea, all the fulness of divine
love. A man might spend millions in the cause of religion and
philanthropy, and not afford one atom of joy in heaven. What are
millions of money to God? A single penitential tear is more precious
to Him than all the wealth of the universe. All the offerings of an](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/9325137-250620031606-e3bf7e07/85/Quality-Software-Project-Management-Two-Volume-Set-Reprinted-Ed-Futrell-61-320.jpg)
![And He said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest." Here the glorious
truth of the intimate union of believers with the glorified Man in
heaven, though not stated, is beautifully and forcibly implied. "But
rise, and stand upon thy feet, for I have appeared unto thee for this
purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things
which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear
unto thee; delivering thee from the people and the Gentiles, unto
whom now I send thee, to open their eyes, and to turn them from
darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they
may receive remission of sins" (the same word as in the commission
to the twelve in Luke xxiv.) "and inheritance among them which are
sanctified, by faith that is in Me."[18]
What depth and fulness in these words! What a comprehensive
statement of man's condition! What a blessed presentation of the
resources of divine grace! There is a very remarkable harmony
between this commission to Paul and that to the twelve in Luke xxiv.
It will perhaps be said there is nothing about repentance. True, the
word does not occur; but we have the moral reality, and that with
singular force and fulness. What mean the words, "To open their
eyes?" Do they not most certainly involve the discovery of our
condition? Assuredly. A man who has his eyes opened is brought to
the knowledge of himself, the knowledge of his condition, the
knowledge of his ways; and this is true repentance. It is a wonderful
moment in a man's history when his eyes are opened. It is the grand
crisis, the momentous epoch, the one turning-point. Till then he is
blind—morally and spiritually blind. He cannot see a single divine
object. He has no perception of anything pertaining to God, to
Christ, to heaven.
This is truly humbling to proud human nature. Think of a clear-
headed, highly educated, deeply learned, intellectual man, a
profound thinker, a powerful reasoner, a thorough philosopher, who
has won the honors, the medals, the degrees, that this world's
universities can bestow; and yet he is blind to everything spiritual,
heavenly, divine. He gropes in moral darkness. He thinks he sees,](https://image.slidesharecdn.com/9325137-250620031606-e3bf7e07/85/Quality-Software-Project-Management-Two-Volume-Set-Reprinted-Ed-Futrell-67-320.jpg)
Quality Software Project Management Two Volume Set Reprinted Ed Futrell
- 1. Quality Software Project Management Two Volume Set Reprinted Ed Futrell download https://ebookbell.com/product/quality-software-project- management-two-volume-set-reprinted-ed-futrell-18650274 Explore and download more ebooks at ebookbell.com
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- 7. he Software Quality Institute Series is a partnership between the Software Quality Institute (SQI) at The University of Texas at Austin and Prentice Hall Professional Technical Reference (PHPTR). The books discuss real-life problems and offer strategies for improving software quality and software business practices. Each publication is written by highly skilled, experienced practitioners who understand and can help solve the problems facing software professionals. SQI series topic areas include software development practices and technologies, management of software organizations, integration of high-quality software into other industries, business issues with reference to software quality, and related areas of interest T Editorial Advisory Board Members: Les Belady, retired chairman and CEO, Mitsubishi, Electric Information Technology Center America Paul Clements, senior member of the technical staff at the Software Engineering Institute at Carnegie Mellon University Al Dale, regents professor of computer science emeritus, The University of Texas Peter Freeman, dean of the College of Computing, Georgia Institute of Technology Herb Krasner, software excellence consultant John Musa, software reliability engineering and testing consultant Betty Otter-Nickerson, CEO, Elegiant, Inc. Shari Lawrence Pfleeger, research scientist and software metrics and quality consultant, president of Systems/Software, Inc. Tony Wasserman, president, Software Methods & Tools CENTER FOR LIFELONG ENGINEERING EDUCATION AND SOFTWARE QUALITY INSTITUTE Carolyn Stark, director, Center for Lifelong Engineering Education Candy Walser Berry, manager, Software Quality Institute, The University of Texas Marilyn Robertson, book series manager, Software Quality Institute, The University of Texas
- 8. TITLES IN THE SOFTWARE QUALITY INSTITUTE SERIES Paul Clements, Editor Constructing Superior Software Shari Lawrence Pfleeger, Les Hatton, and Charles C. Howell Solid Software R. J. (Bob) Torres Practitioner’s Handbook for User Interface Design and Development Robert Futrell, Donald Shafer, and Linda Shafer Quality Software Project Management Robert Culbertson, Chris Brown, and Gary Cobb Rapid Testing Karel Vredenburg, Scott Isensee, and Carol Righi User-Centered Design: Introduction,Deployment and Optimization
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- 11. © 2002 Prentice Hall PTR A Division of Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher The publisher offers discounts on this book when ordered in bulk quantities. For more information, contact Corporate Sales Department, Prentice Hall PTR One Lake Street Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Phone: 800-382-3419; FAX: 201-236-7141 E-mail (Internet): corpsales@prenhall.com Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN 0-13-091297-2 Pearson Education LTD. Pearson Education Australia PTY, Limited Pearson Education Singapore, Pte. Ltd Pearson Education North Asia Ltd Pearson Education Canada, Ltd. Pearson Educación de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. Pearson Education—Japan Pearson Education Malaysia, Pte. Ltd Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Futrell, Robert. Quality software project management / Robert Futrell, Donald Shafer, Linda Shafer. p. cm. — (Software Quality Institute series) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-13-091297-2 (pbk.) 1. Computer software—Development—Management. I. Shafer, Donald. II. Shafer, Linda. III. Title. IV. Series. QA76.76.D47 F88 2001 005.1'068—dc21 2001133050 Editorial/Production Supervision: Argosy Acquisitions Editor: Paul Petralia Editorial Assistant: Richard Winkler Marketing Manager: Debby van Dijk Manufacturing Manager: Alexis R. Heydt-Long Development Editor: Jennifer Blackwell Technical Editor: Barry J. Busler Cover Design: Nina Scuderi Cover Design Director: Jerry Votta Series Design: Gail Cocker-Bogusz
- 12. vii To The University of Texas at Austin Software Quality Institute
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- 14. ix Contents Foreword xxix Preface xxxiii Using the Guide as a Course Text xxxv Acknowledgements xxxvi CHAPTER 1 Introduction 1 Introduction to the 34 Competencies 4 Surveying the Foundations 6 Some Other Useful Definitions 13 Product Development Techniques 17 Project Management Skills 28 Summary 49 Problems for Review 52 Citations 53 CHAPTER 2 A Case in Point 55 Background Information on the Chinese Railway System 56 Railroad Building in China 58 Chinese Business Environment 60 Project Description 61 A Final Note: Potential Market for Software 67 Citations 68 Web Pages for Further Information 68
- 15. x CONTENTS CHAPTER 3 Process Overview 71 Key Chapter 3 Points 73 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 75 Chapter 3 Relation to the 34 Competencies 76 Learning Objectives for Chapter 3 76 SEI CMM Level 3 Is the Defined Level 77 IEEE 1074—Process Map for Software Life Cycle Process 84 Customized Software Development Process 94 Software Project Management Organization Life Cycle 96 Summary 96 Problems for Review 98 Visit the Case Study 98 Citations 99 References 99 Web Pages for Further Information 99 CHAPTER 4 Selecting Software Development Life Cycles 101 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 102 Chapter 4 Relation to the 34 Competencies 103 Learning Objectives for Chapter 4 103 What Is a Software Development Life Cycle? 104 Why Are Software Development Life Cycles Important? 105 Selection and Tailoring of Software Development Life Cycles Is a Quality Objective 109 The SEI CMM and the Life Cycle 109 International Organization for Standardization (ISO)/IEC 12207 112 Software Development Life Cycle Models 114 Selecting an Appropriate Software Development Life Cycle Model 146 Customizing the Life Cycle Model 152 Summary 153 Problems for Review 155 Visit the Case Study 156 Citations 158 References 158 Web Pages for Further Information 159
- 16. Contents xi CHAPTER 5 Managing Domain Processes 161 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 163 Chapter 5 Relation to the 34 Competencies 163 Learning Objectives for Chapter 5 164 Defining the Process Domain 165 Project Selection Models 173 Project Portfolio Management 177 Understanding Financial Processes 180 Summary 181 Problems for Review 181 Visit the Case Study 182 Citations 182 Web Pages for Further Information 182 CHAPTER 6 Selecting a Project Team 183 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 184 Chapter 6 Relation to the 34 Competencies 184 Learning Objectives for Chapter 6 186 Selecting a Project Team 186 The Whole Is the Sum of the Parts 188 Parts Need to Work Together 198 Working Together Requires a Framework 203 Providing the Total Solution 209 Summary 213 Problems for Review 214 Visit the Case Study 216 Citations 216 Suggested Readings 218 Web Pages for Further Information 218 CHAPTER 7 Defining the Goal and Scope of the Software Project 219 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 220 Chapter 7 Relation to the 34 Competencies 221 Learning Objectives for Chapter 7 222
- 17. xii CONTENTS Project Planning 222 What Is “The Goal”? 226 What Is the Scope of Work? 229 Project Charter 231 The Software Project Management Plan 233 Summary 234 Problems for Review 235 Visit the Case Study 235 Citations 235 Suggested Readings 236 Web Pages for Further Information 236 CHAPTER 8 Creating the Work Breakdown Structure 237 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 238 Chapter 8 Relation to the 34 Competencies 238 Learning Objectives for Chapter 8 240 What Is a Work Breakdown Structure? 240 Approaches to Building a WBS 244 Defining Project Milestones 247 Creating Work Packages 248 Building a WBS for Software 249 Summary 253 Problems for Review 253 Visit the Case Study 253 Suggested Readings 254 Web Pages for Further Information 255 CHAPTER 9 Identifying the Tasks and Activities 257 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 258 Chapter 9 Relation to the 34 Competencies 259 Learning Objectives for Chapter 9 260 Characteristics of Tasks and Activities 260 The Activity ID Process 263 Summary 302 Problems for Review 302
- 18. Contents xiii Visit the Case Study 302 References 302 Web Pages for Further Information 303 CHAPTER 10 Software Size and Reuse Estimating 305 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 306 Chapter 10 Relation to the 34 Competencies 306 Learning Objectives for Chapter 10 308 The SEI CMM and Estimating 308 Problems and Risks with Estimating Software Size 310 Getting Started with Software Sizing: Estimating Begins with Planning 313 The Effects of Reuse on Software Size 349 Summary 353 Problems for Review 355 Visit the Case Study 355 Citations 356 Suggested Readings 357 Web Pages for Further Information 357 CHAPTER 11 Estimating Duration and Cost 359 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 359 Chapter 11 Relation to the 34 Competencies 361 Learning Objectives for Chapter 11 362 The SEI CMM and Estimating 362 Effort Measures 366 The Steps in Estimating 368 COCOMO: A Regression Model 372 COCOMO II 398 SLIM: A Mathematical Model 399 Summary 407 Problems for Review 412 Visit the Case Study 413 Citations 413 References 413 Suggested Readings 413 Web Pages for Further Information 414
- 19. xiv CONTENTS CHAPTER 12 Assigning Resources 417 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 418 Chapter 12 Relation to the 34 Competencies 419 Learning Objectives for Chapter 12 420 Organizational Planning 420 Identifying and Documenting the Project Roles and Skills Needed 421 Assigning Responsibilities to Individuals 423 Establishing Reporting Relationships 428 Project Management Resource Activities During Execution 430 Summary 432 Problems for Review 433 Visit the Case Study 433 Suggested Readings 433 Web Pages for Further Information 433 CHAPTER 13 Choosing an Organizational Form 435 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 436 Chapter 13 Relation to the 34 Competencies 437 Learning Objectives for Chapter 13 438 What Is an Organization? 438 Characteristics of an Organization 441 Organizational Structures 447 Implementing an Organizational Structure 453 Summary 457 Problems for Review 457 Visit the Case Study 458 Citations 458 References 458 Suggested Readings 459 Web Pages for Further Information 459 CHAPTER 14 Considering Dependencies 461 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 462 Chapter 14 Relation to the 34 Competencies 462
- 20. Contents xv Learning Objectives for Chapter 14 463 What Are Dependencies? 464 Types of Software Development Dependencies 465 Brainstorming Dependencies and Activities 472 Summary 475 Problems for Review 476 Visit the Case Study 476 Suggested Readings 476 Web Pages for Further Information 476 CHAPTER 15 Scheduling the Work 477 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 478 Chapter 15 Relation to the 34 Competencies 479 Learning Objectives for Chapter 15 480 Why Schedule? 480 The Uncertainty of Scheduling the Future 481 Scheduling Fundamentals 485 PERT and CPM Scheduling 489 Leveling Resource Assignments 494 Map the Schedule to a Real Calendar 496 Critical Chain Scheduling 498 Complete Process for Building a Real Schedule 502 Summary 502 Problems for Review 503 Visit the Case Study 503 Citations 503 Suggested Readings 503 Web Pages for Further Information 504 CHAPTER 16 Eliciting Requirements 505 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 506 Chapter 16 Relation to the 34 Competencies 506 Learning Objectives for Chapter 16 509 Background for Requirements Management 509 Requirements Management and the SEI CMM 511
- 21. xvi CONTENTS Critical Success Factors as Applied to Software Requirements 513 What Is a Software Requirement? 514 What Makes a “Good” Software Requirement? 515 Requirements Elicitation Methods 517 Guidelines for Writing Quality Requirements 541 Challenges in Eliciting Requirements 544 Requirements and Quality Function Deployment 546 Summary 551 Problems for Review 552 Visit the Case Study 553 Citations 553 Suggested Readings 554 Web Pages for Further Information 555 CHAPTER 17 Developing the Software Requirements Specification 557 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 558 Chapter 17 Relation to the 34 Competencies 559 Learning Objectives for Chapter 17 560 Questions the SRS Answers for a Project 560 Benefits of an SRS 564 Building the SRS 565 Evaluating the Project SRS 579 Degree of Stability 582 Degree of Necessity 582 Verifiability 583 Modifiability 583 Traceability 584 Some Final Hints 584 Summary 584 Problems for Review 585 Visit the Case Study 585 Citations 586 References 586 Web Pages for Further Information 586
- 22. Contents xvii CHAPTER 18 Determining Project Risks 587 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 588 Chapter 18 Relation to the 34 Competencies 588 Learning Objectives for Chapter 18 590 What Is Risk Management? 590 Risk Management Models 594 Project Risk and the SEI 597 Identifying Risks 598 Analyzing and Quantifying Risks 600 Developing and Controlling Risks 603 Risk Categories 606 Steps in Developing a Risk Management Plan 608 Summary 621 Problems for Review 622 Visit the Case Study 623 Citations 623 Web Pages for Further Information 624 Risk Management Tools 624 References 624 CHAPTER 19 Introduction to Software Engineering 625 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 626 Chapter 19 Relation to the 34 Competencies 627 Learning Objectives for Chapter 19 628 Software, Engineering, and Software Engineering 631 Software Engineering Body of Knowledge 635 SWEBOK and the SEI CMM 639 SWEBOK and the 34 Software Project Management Competencies 651 SWEBOK and Quality Software Project Management 668 Summary 694 Problems for Review 694 Visit the Case Study 694 Citations 695 Web Pages for Further Information 695 Suggested Readings 696
- 23. xviii CONTENTS CHAPTER 20 Reliability 699 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 702 Chapter 20 Relation to the 34 Competencies 705 Learning Objectives for Chapter 20 706 Software Reliability Terminology 706 Fault Forecasting 707 Fault Prevention 709 Fault Removal 711 Fault Tolerance 713 Reliability Tools 715 Software Reliability Plan 716 Summary 718 Problems for Review 719 Visit the Case Study 720 Citations 721 Standards 721 Web Pages for Further Information 721 Tools 722 Suggested Readings 722 CHAPTER 21 Software Metrics 723 Where We Are in the Software Life Cycle 724 Chapter 21 Relation to the 34 Competencies 727 Learning Objectives for Chapter 21 728 What Is a Metric? 729 The Importance of Metrics to Software Projects 732 Metrics and the SEI CMM 734 SEI CMM Level 2: Repeatable 736 SEI CMM Level 3: Defined 736 SEI CMM Level 4: Managed 738 Useful Metrics 739 The Basili Goal/Question/Metric Paradigm 740 A “Basic Metrics” Starter Set 756 Measuring Aspects of Software Quality 767 The Metrics Plan 772 Summary 772
- 24. Contents xix Problems for Review 773 Visit the Case Study 774 Citations 774 Suggested Readings 775 Web Pages for Further Information 779 CHAPTER 22 Analysis and Design Methods 781 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 782 Chapter 22 Relation to the 34 Competencies 782 Learning Objectives for Chapter 22 784 Analysis and Design and the SEI CMM 785 Structured Analysis/Structured Design (SA/SD) 787 Object-Oriented Analysis/Object-Oriented Design (OOA/OOD) 844 Summary 866 Problems for Review 869 Visit the Case Study 871 Citations 872 Suggested Readings 873 Web Pages for Further Information 876 CHAPTER 23 Validation and Verification 877 Reviews, Inspections, and Walkthroughs 878 Testing 878 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 880 Chapter 23 Relation to the 34 Competencies 882 Learning Objectives for Chapter 23 883 Static Testing: Reviews 883 Dynamic Testing 910 Directed Flow Graph: McCabe Cyclomatic Complexity Analysis 930 User Acceptance and Usability Testing 942 The Ideal Test Coverage 944 Dynamic Testing: Measurement, Reporting, and Decision Making 952 Object-Oriented Testing 954 Summary of Dynamic Testing 955 Summary 955
- 25. xx CONTENTS Problems for Review 956 Visit the Case Study 957 Citations 957 Suggested Readings 959 Web Pages for Further Information 962 CHAPTER 24 Use of Tools 965 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 968 Learning Objectives for Chapter 24 970 Software Requirements Tools 970 Software Design Tools 972 Software Construction Tools 973 Software Testing Tools 975 Software Maintenance Tools 979 Software Configuration Management Tools— CMM Level 2 and Above 981 Software Engineering Life Cycle Process Tools 982 Software Engineering Process Tools 982 Software Quality Tools 984 Software Engineering Management Tools 985 Infrastructure Support Tools 986 Miscellaneous Tools Issues 987 Minimal Tool Sets 988 Summary 994 Problems for Review 994 Visit the Case Study 995 Citations 996 Tools 996 Web Pages for Further Information 997 References 998 CHAPTER 25 Project Tracking and Control 999 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 999 Chapter 25 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1000 Learning Objectives for Chapter 25 1001
- 26. Contents xxi Control Systems 1002 Scope Management 1004 Schedule Management 1007 Cost Management 1011 Quality Management 1019 Progress Management 1020 Risk Management 1033 Summary 1033 Problems for Review 1033 Visit the Case Study 1034 Suggested Readings 1034 Web Pages for Further Information 1035 CHAPTER 26 Continuous Process Improvement 1037 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1038 Chapter 26 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1040 Learning Objectives for Chapter 26 1042 Maturity Level Process Characteristics 1042 Waste in the Software Development Organization 1046 Six-Step Software Development Process Improvement Model 1051 Applying the Software Development Process Improvement Model 1054 Summary 1063 Problems for Review 1066 Visit the Case Study 1066 Citations 1067 Tools 1067 Web Pages for Further Information 1068 Suggested Readings 1068 CHAPTER 27 Project Termination 1071 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1071 Chapter 27 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1073 Learning Objectives for Chapter 27 1073 Why Terminate? 1074 Types of Termination 1078
- 27. xxii CONTENTS What to Do upon Project Termination 1080 Termination Process 1082 Summary 1082 Problems for Review 1084 Visit the Case Study 1084 Citations 1084 Suggested Readings 1085 Web Pages for Further Information 1085 CHAPTER 28 Post-Performance Analysis 1087 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1088 Chapter 28 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1088 Learning Objectives for Chapter 28 1090 What’s in a Name? 1090 How to Conduct a PPA 1092 Summary 1103 Problems for Review 1104 Visit the Case Study 1104 Citations 1105 Suggested Readings 1105 Web Pages for Further Information 1105 CHAPTER 29 Reporting and Communicating 1107 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1108 Chapter 29 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1108 Learning Objectives for Chapter 29 1109 Effective Communication 1110 Communication Techniques 1114 Communicating with Teams 1114 Communication and Motivation Skills of a Software Project Manager 1130 Behavioral Theory and Motivation 1139 Project Manager Behavior That Motivates 1141 Communicating in Meetings 1151 Communicating via Negotiation 1156 Negotiating and Culture 1164 Communicating via Visual Expression of Information 1170
- 28. Contents xxiii Reporting Project Status 1174 Communications Management Plan Template 1175 Baseline Plans 1175 Project Reporting 1179 Summary 1181 Problems for Review 1183 Visit the Case Study 1184 Citations 1185 Suggested Readings 1186 Web Pages for Further Information 1187 CHAPTER 30 Software Quality Assurance 1189 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1191 Chapter 30 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1191 Learning Objectives for Chapter 30 1193 Building the Software Quality Assurance Plan 1193 Ensuring the SQAP 1201 Summary 1206 Problems for Review 1207 Visit the Case Study 1207 References 1207 Web Pages for Further Information 1208 CHAPTER 31 Software Configuration Management 1211 What Is Software Configuration Management? 1212 Why Is SCM Important? 1212 Who Is Involved in SCM? 1213 How Can Software Configuration Be Implemented in Your Organization? 1213 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1214 Chapter 31 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1214 Learning Objectives for Chapter 31 1216 SCM Principles 1216 The Four Basic Requirements for an SCM System 1219 Planning and Organizing for SCM 1220 SCM Tools 1223
- 29. xxiv CONTENTS Benefits of SCM Process and Tools 1228 Some Problems with Software 1231 Summary 1235 Problems for Review 1236 Visit the Case Study 1236 Citations 1237 References 1237 Web Pages for Further Information 1238 CHAPTER 32 Legal Issues in Software 1241 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1248 Chapter 32 Relation to the 34 Competencies 1248 Learning Objectives for Chapter 32 1248 Product Development Techniques 1250 Project Management Skills 1256 People Management Skills 1260 Legal Risk Issues 1265 Summary 1274 Problems for Review 1274 Visit the Case Study 1275 Web Pages for Further Information 1275 Suggested Readings 1277 CHAPTER 33 Summary 1279 Product Development Techniques 1280 Project Management Skills 1301 People Management Skills 1326 Visit the Case Study 1335 APPENDIX A Supporting Organizations 1337 Appendix A Relation to the 34 Competencies 1337 Key Appendix A Points 1338 Organizations Supporting Software Development Project Management 1338
- 30. Contents xxv State and Local Quality Organizations and Awards 1350 Visit the Case Study 1368 Web Pages for Further Information 1368 APPENDIX B Real World Projects 1369 Case 1: Managing a Portfolio of Client Projects 1372 Hardware Tester Company Projects 1377 Case 2: COTS Software Selection for Information Technology Systems 1380 Case 3: Legacy Software Re-engineering 1385 Problems for Review 1388 Visit the Case Study 1389 APPENDIX C Creating the Business Plan 1391 The Technology Business Plan as the Company’s Meta-Plan 1391 What Is the Technology Business Plan? 1392 Why Build a Technology Business Plan? 1394 Technology Business Plan Contents 1394 Making the Business Case Cost Benefit Analysis in a Technology Business Plan 1406 Problems for Review 1411 Visit the Case Study 1412 Web Pages for Further Information 1412 APPENDIX D Understanding Systems Engineering 1413 Where We Are in the Project Management Life Cycle 1415 Learning Objectives for Appendix D 1417 Classical Systems Engineering Model 1417 Requirements Engineering 1426 Types of Product Systems 1428 Problems for Review 1432 Visit the Case Study 1433 References 1433 Web Pages for Further Information 1433 Tools 1434
- 31. xxvi CONTENTS APPENDIX E Distance Project Management 1435 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1436 Learning Objectives for Appendix E 1437 Managing Distance Projects—Communications 1438 Managing Distance Projects—Remote Teambuilding 1442 Managing Distance Projects—Tools 1443 A Case in Point—Quorus™ 1444 Ten Commandments of Managing a Remote Project Team 1446 Problems for Review 1447 Visit the Case Study 1447 Citations 1449 Web Pages for Further Information 1449 APPENDIX F Project Artifact Templates 1451 Where We Are in the Product Development Life Cycle 1452 Learning Objectives for Appendix F 1452 Software Project Management Plan (SPMP) 1453 Software Requirements Specification (SRS) 1466 Project Risk Management Plan 1486 Software Test Plan 1520 Software Configuration Management Plan (SCMP) 1528 References 1539 Web Pages for Further Information 1539 APPENDIX G Joint Application Design in Use 1541 What the Team Did Right 1549 What the Team Would Change Next Time 1549 JAD Team Documents 1551 Final JAD Documents 1560
- 32. Contents xxvii Glossary 1563 Quality Engineering Glossaries 1563 Software Engineering Glossaries 1563 Project Management Glossaries 1563 Quality Software Project Management Practitioner’s Glossary 1564 Bibliography 1575 Print Bibliography 1575 Web Pages for Further Information 1595 Index 1611
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- 34. xxix Foreword A few years ago, a colleague at a management consulting firm invited me to give a presentation at a monthly meeting of the local chapter of a professional software organization. It turned out that there was an ulterior motive for the invitation: My colleague explained that his firm was involved in a huge project for a major client, and that several of the client’s managers would be attending my presentation. “Here’s the problem,” my colleague said to me. “We’ve got dozens of our programmers, analysts, network architects, database designers, and other technical people working on this project—and the client is perfectly happy to pay for them. But when we told them that we need to have a project manager and some support staff to help carry out the project manage- ment tasks, they balked. They don’t understand why they should have to pay for project management—and the way they described it to us, it sounds like they don’t believe that project management has any value.” My task for the presentation, as it turned out, was to provide an eloquent explanation of why project management was important, with the indirect implication that it was worth paying for. If such an event had taken place in the mid-1960s, perhaps it would not have been surprising. After all, as Futrell, Shafer, and Shafer point out in the first chapter of their book, it was not until 1968 that a famous NATO software engineering conference provided some public recog- nition of the importance of project management in what came to be known as the “software crisis.” Even in 1975 or 1985, we could have forgiven a typical business person for not appre- ciating that successful IT projects require more than an army of clever technical people. But my experience took place in the 1990s, and I suspect that it is being repeated today, in various parts of the world. If nothing else, it demonstrates why there is such a desperate need for a thorough, detailed book like Quality Software Project Management. The illusion that no project management resources are necessary to succeed with an IT project is only slightly more dangerous than the common misconception that project man- agement is simple, intuitive, and easily learned by skimming through a “project management for dummies” book. A quick scan of the Amazon.com Web site indicates that there are roughly half a dozen books with some variation on that title; and while the books probably do serve a constructive purpose, I’m concerned about the common perception that a 22-year-old Java
- 35. xxx FOREWORD programmer, with a mere two years of experience in a technical discipline, can be promoted to the position of project manager with any reasonable hope of succeeding on a non-trivial project. Becoming a bona fide project manager is not a quick or easy process—and if I can accomplish only one thing in this brief foreword, let me also emphasize that it’s not equivalent to achieving competence with a software product like Microsoft Project. That particular program, as well as a dozen others like it, are enormously useful tools for carrying out some of the scheduling activities associated with a project. But as the authors describe in enormous detail in this book, there’s more to project management than just drawing PERT charts and Gantt charts. Indeed, there are some 34 key competencies, as the authors point out; perhaps we can get away with mediocrity or minimal competence in one or two of those competencies, if the cir- cumstances of the project allow it, but there are literally dozens of things we need to be good at if we’re going to call ourselves “project managers” in the highly complex field of IT systems development. The authors have been involved with a software project management certification pro- gram at the University of Texas at Austin’s Software Quality Institute; in the best of worlds, IT organizations would send their fledgling project managers to such a program for a total immersion course—as well as sending their veteran project managers (most of whom have acquired only a haphazard understanding of the 34 key competencies through on-the-job training) for a refresher course. But for those of us who don’t have the time, or whose employers don’t have the budget or the foresight to send us to such a program, the next best thing is a book like Quality Software Project Management. Chances are that you won’t be able to read this book in a single sitting. It’s not an “air- plane book” that you can read on a quick flight from New York to Chicago; it’s not even a “weekend book” that you can take to the beach for some summertime reading. You’ll need to set aside an hour or two each evening over a period of several weeks or months to be able to absorb all of the guidelines, checklists, procedures, and advice from these eminently qualified practitioners of software project management. You should also take advantage of the Web site and additional resources provided by the authors and realize that mastery of project management is an ongoing process. When I first started working in the computer field in the mid-1960s, my goal was to be the best assembly-language programmer on the planet. Of course, the computer I was working on at the time has long since disappeared, but there is still a great deal of honor and virtue to be associated with mastery of such technical skills as programming, testing, or database design. For many of us, though, a fascination with technical skills is eventually replaced by a dedication to project management skills because it doesn’t take more than two or three projects to realize that success or failure is far more likely to be determined by management issues than technical issues. In my case, it took nearly a decade to make that shift in prefer- ences and priorities. Simply wanting to become a project manager is not enough. I only wish
- 36. Foreword xxxi that I had had a book like Quality Software Project Management to provide the foundation for skills and practices that I had to learn on my own, piece by piece. As for you, dear reader, rejoice: You do have such a book, and if you read it and study it carefully, it will not only speed up the learning process, but it may also help you avoid some unpleasant project disasters along the way! Ed Yourdon September, 2001
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- 38. xxxiii Preface Quality Software Project Management was written by and for software practitioners who need a hands-on guide to the non-deterministic but leading-edge task of managing software development projects. The book takes its overall outline from the successful Software Project Management (SWPM) certification program at The University of Texas at Austin’s Software Quality Institute, a division of the College of Engineering’s Center for Lifelong Engineering Education (CLEE). Software project managers and their development teams play a critical role in the success of modern businesses, be they high-tech or otherwise. These professionals and their knowledge of sound management practices and thorough software development, enhancement, and maintenance processes, can determine organizational success or failure. The trend toward increased software quality is responsible for the promulgation of new stan- dards to certify that development processes meet certain benchmarks. Certifications to standards are becoming more common as buyers demand tighter quality controls. Software project managers must be keenly aware of standards such as those published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), as well as continually evolving practices, guided in part by the Software Engineering Institute’s (SEI) Capability Maturity Model (CMM), and by a new emphasis on the management of small projects. It is in recognition of these trends that UT’s College of Engineering and its Software Quality Institute (SQI) created the SWPM certificate program in 1993. Since then, hundreds of software project managers have graduated from the program. Those managers are currently applying “best practices” to overcome the limitations of a tight labor force and to meet the rapidly changing needs of their customers and organizations in today’s highly competitive market- place. This book is a consolidation of teachings from that certification program as it has evolved over the years. In addition to knowledge of the principles of software engineering, software project manag- ers must incorporate skills for managing people, products, and process into their daily routine. For this reason, Quality Software Project Management is grounded in two interlaced bodies of knowledge developed by internationally recognized organizations: the Project Management Institute (PMI® ) and the American Society for Quality (ASQ). SQI instructors, many of
- 39. xxxiv PREFACE whom are certified software (CSQE) and project management professionals (PMP® ), refine knowledge identified by those two organizations and contribute decades of their own industry experience with the most up-to-date practices. Quality, applicability, timeliness, portability, and profitability are all main areas of focus, both for the SWPM certificate program and for this book, on which it is based. Software engineering principles and quality goals are necessary but not sufficient for the needs of today’s marketplace. Shorter cycle times, completed with fewer resources, are also in demand. Products must be carefully targeted toward the specific functional requirements of increasingly sophisticated customers. Software developers and managers dealing with these challenging and often conflicting goals, must be highly skilled in planning, coordinat- ing, and managing software projects. They must know how to tailor best practices to their current projects and to take advantage of their organization’s past experience when con- structing project plans. Establishing the proper metrics to monitor project performance is essential, as is having necessary multi-disciplinary team leadership skills. Furthermore, soft- ware project management must view the project “big picture” as it relates to their profession and to their career advancement. Quality Software Project Management has evolved from the strong belief of the authors, and based on their experience, that with a defined process, quality software can be developed in a repeatable fashion. Figure 1 shows that methods, tools, and technology interrelate in com- plex and constant ways and require the process in order to achieve balance. These three enti- ties are at the heart of quality, software, and project management, and will therefore be used throughout the text. A method is defined as a manner, means, or process for accomplishing something. A tool is defined as an implement or machine used to do work or perform a task. Technology is defined as the application of scientific knowledge in industry or business. The experience of the authors is that the knowledge in this guide, applied by practitioners, along with the effective use of methods, tools, and techniques encapsulated in 34 competen- cies, will result in quality software. “Quality” incorporates the necessary functionality as well as other factors such as reliability, usability, etc. Figure 2 represents how ideas are turned into products through iterations of such use. T o o l s T e c h n o l o g y Methods Products FIGURE 1 Methods, Tools, and Technology Relationships
- 40. Using the Guide as a Course Text xxxv While based on the SWPM course materials, this book is not simply a recitation of them. The specific combined experience of these authors (almost 100 years worth) permeates the work and attempts to blend the thoughts of about 30 instructors into “one voice.” A composite case study has been developed containing most of the common types of problems encountered in software projects. The project scenario reflects today’s increasingly common need for rapid “Internet time” software development. Using the Guide as a Course Text ____________________ If you are participating in either the online or the classroom presentation of The University of Texas at Austin Software Quality Institute’s Software Project Management certification pro- gram, this will be your main text. If you are a professor or instructor of software engineering, this text will suffice for a semester-long course in software engineering plus project manage- ment. The bodies of knowledge for project management, software engineering, and software quality, recognized by several professional societies (IEEE, SEI, PMI, ASQ) are presented. If you are a student of project management and software engineering, please feel confident that real industry veterans have authored this text. T e c h n o l o g y T e c h n o l o g y Products Ideas T o o l s Methods Products Products Products Methods T o o l s FIGURE 2 Transforming Ideas into Products
- 41. xxxvi PREFACE Acknowledgements ________________________________ The authors of this text are “masters” not “philosophers,” meaning that each has a Masters Degree, but none has a PhD at this time. In the original academic world of associates, bachelors, and masters, the masters of the trade knew how to apply their knowledge to “real” tasks. They were the practitioners. Philosophers were considered to be in a different category, focusing on theory and more ethereal concepts. Our current academic society assumes that philosophers are also masters of application. While there is no question that these philosophers deservedly receive the highest recognition, it also seems to be the case that, with the fields of software engineering and project management, the masters of application are often found in industry rather than in academia. Computer science is to software engineering as chemistry is to chemical engineering. The former is about the theory, and the latter is about practical application of the theory. A mathematician who wrestles with the theoretical question of whether an answer exists, has a different job than the engineer who needs to know the answer in order to use it. While paying homage to all of the theorists who have developed computer science, we hope to be some of the masters, who, in some small way, add to its application. We wish to personally thank The University of Texas at Austin, Center for Lifelong Engineer- ing Education, Software Quality Institute’s staff for their unwavering, cheerful, consistent (and constant) help. They made the last eleven software project management certification program materials available to us, and professionally, efficiently, and effectively helped us get everything we needed. Candy Walser-Berry, Marilyn Robertson, Theresa Lestingi, Heather Wagner, Jayne Tune, Carolyn Stark—thanks! The Chinese railway case study became a real but fair student challenge due to the original work of Jack Odom and the acting skills of John McNeill. The employee owners of Athens Group provided material for Appen- dix B, “Real World Projects,” and a wealth of metrics data. The instructors who shaped the SWPM lessons deserve special credit—many of them are cited in the reference sections of the individual chapters. We appreciate the SQI Board of Advisors who have volunteered their time, since 1993, to make a program of high quality. Thank you Paul Petralia and Jennifer Blackwell at Prentice Hall, and especially to Barry Busler of IBM. And, of course, we also appreciate and thank our children for cheering us on—a collection of four fabulous young women and one incredible young man.
- 42. 1 Introduction 1 Fifty software engineers from 11 different countries, “all concerned professionally with soft- ware,” attended a NATO Science Committee conference in Garmish, Germany in October 1968. While most discussions were focused on the technical aspects of design, production, implementation, distribution, and service of software, there were also reports on “the difficul- ties of meeting schedules and specifications on large software projects.” This may have been the first public recognition of the importance of software project management—needless to say, those difficulties of “schedules and specifications” continue to trouble us today. Shortly afterward, 22 international leaders in software development from academia, industry, and research laboratories gathered at Hedsor Park, a corporate retreat near London, to commem- orate the NATO conference and to analyze the future direction of software. These events became known as the first sober look at the impending “software crisis.” Following this awakening to the serious impact software could have on human lives, improvements in the process of software development began to be introduced. Among them was the concept of a software life cycle (SLC) to represent the sequence of events that occur in software develop- ment. The definition of an SLC, as well as arguments for and against its raison d’etre, has been the subject of many conversations and publications in the software industry. By the late 1970s, the controversy resulted in the mantra, “Stop the life cycle, I want to get off!” Despite
- 43. 2 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION the differing views, the need for a documented software development process persisted. In 1970, W.W. Royce identified several phases in a typical SLC. Royce and Barry Boehm sug- gested that controlling the entry and the exit points from each phase in the process would improve quality and perhaps increase productivity. For example, the design of software module interfaces should be delayed until the requirements have been specified, thereby reducing the amount of rework. Their model was informally labeled the “waterfall model” SLC because it was graphically portrayed in a manner similar to Figure 1–1. Software devel- opment activities “flow” from block to block in the graphic. In reality, most project activities do not proceed linearly. Often, developers are required to revert to a previous phase to follow up on issues that were not adequately addressed at that time. When, in the design phase, a missing or incorrect requirement is discovered, the developer Concept Exploration System Exploration Requirements Design Implementation Installation Maintenance Operations and Support Retirement FIGURE 1–1 The “Waterfall” Software Life Cycle (SLC)
- 44. Introduction 3 does not plow ahead, but revisits the requirements specifications phase. When the require- ments specification is once again believed to be complete and correct, the design phase is reentered and begun again. To accommodate this iterative nature of software development, backward arrows were added to what was becoming the industry standard life cycle graphic, as illustrated in Figure 1–2. Now, there are lots of people who feel that the waterfall model is old-fashioned or simplistic, having long ago outlived its usefulness—the very name seems wrong, since water cannot “fall” uphill to accommodate the backward arrows. All sorts of new models have been depicted to better show how the “real world” works, or how software can be developed faster, or how customers can become more engaged in the process to improve functionality. The spiral model, the evolutionary rapid prototyping model, the V-shaped model, and others Concept Exploration System Exploration Requirements Design Implementation Installation Maintenance Operations and Support Retirement FIGURE 1–2 The Iterative “Waterfall” Model Software Life Cycle (SLC)
- 45. 4 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION have emerged to solve one issue or another. Today, most practitioners might agree that there are so many different types of projects, a one size SLC cannot possibly fit all. The modern view- point is that unique projects require unique models, or combinations of models, to succeed. We will discuss the choice of appropriate SLC models, or modified versions of SLC models, in Chapter 4, “Selecting Software Development Life Cycles.” We will describe several of the more modern SLCs, and how a project manager can decide which one to use. We will also explain the process groups from the Project Management Body of Knowledge® (PMBOK® ) Guide—initiating processes, planning processes, executing processes, and closing processes— and how they map to software life cycle phases. For simplicity’s sake, each chapter in this book will describe project activities by pegging them to the common “waterfall with iterations” life cycle. Though many software practices have changed considerably since the 1970s, tens of thousands of developers learned to use the language of the first SLC as part of a common vocabulary. The terms phase, iteration, entry criteria, exit criteria, concept exploration, maintenance, and so forth, have been passed on to suc- ceeding generations of analysts, designers, and programmers. No matter what kind of software project, or its size or scope, the phases of concept exploration through retirement will take place one way or another. The old faithful SLC provides a cradle-to-grave snapshot of project steps, be they large or small. It is for this reason that we have chosen to describe how each of the chapters in this book fits into the overall software process by looking at where we are in the product development life cycle. Introduction to the 34 Competencies_________________ In the early stages of software project management, the best programmers were promoted to the role of project manager because they demonstrated competence with the tools (program- ming languages, compilers, etc.) and often displayed knowledge of a domain, such as a sci- entific, business, or real-time application. They frequently did not succeed in this position because they were unprepared for situations outside of the technical realm. Now we know that every software manager needs skills far beyond knowing how to code. A working knowledge of software engineering is necessary to succeed, but a good software manager needs to excel in people and project management skills, too. We have compiled a list of the essential competencies employed by the most successful software project managers and organized them into three categories: product, project, and people, as shown in Figure 1–3. This list came from the experiences of many practicing software project managers who contributed to the Software Project Management (SWPM) certificate pro- gram at The University of Texas at Austin from 1993 to 2001. It represents the Software Quality Institute’s Body of Knowledge for Software Project Management (SQI BOK). The remainder of this introductory chapter will discuss each of these categories in more detail, while chapters in the sections that follow will show how to use each skill in practical
- 46. Introduction to the 34 Competencies 5 situations. Many of these techniques and skills will be further illustrated in sidebar stories and anecdotes. Product Development Techniques 1. Assessing processes—Defining criteria for reviews 2. Awareness of process standards—Understanding process standards 3. Defining the product—Identifying customer environment and product requirements 4. Evaluating alternative processes—Evaluating various approaches 5. Managing requirements—Monitoring requirements changes 6. Managing subcontractors—Planning, managing, and monitoring performance 7. Performing the initial assessment—Assessing difficulty, risks, costs, and schedule 8. Selecting methods and tools—Defining selection processes 9. Tailoring processes—Modifying standard processes to suit a project 10. Tracking product quality—Monitoring the quality of an evolving product 11. Understanding development activities—Learning the software development cycle Project Management Skills 12. Building a work breakdown structure—Building a WBS for a project 13. Documenting plans—Identifying key components 14. Estimating cost—Estimating cost to complete the project 15. Estimating effort—Estimating effort required to complete the project 16. Managing risks—Identifying and determining the impact and handling of risks 17. Monitoring development—Monitoring the production of software Product 1. Assessing processes 2. Awareness of process standards 3. Defining the product 4. Evaluating alternative processes 5. Managing requirements 6. Managing subcontractors 7. Performing the initial assessment 8. Selecting methods and tools 9. Tailoring processes 10. Tracking product quality 11. Understanding development activities Project 12. Building a work breakdown structure 13. Documenting plans 14. Estimating cost 15. Estimating effort 16. Managing risks 17. Monitoring development 18. Scheduling 19. Selecting metrics 20. Selecting project management tools 21. Tracking process 22. Tracking project progress People 23. Appraising performance 24. Handling intellectual property 25. Holding effective meetings 26. Interaction and communication 27. Leadership 28. Managing change 29. Negotiating successfully 30. Planning careers 31. Presenting effectively 32. Recruiting 33. Selecting a team 34. Teambuilding Software Project Management FIGURE 1–3 Thirty-Four Competencies that Every Software Project Manager Needs to Know
- 47. 6 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION 18. Scheduling—Creating a schedule and key milestones 19. Selecting metrics—Choosing and using appropriate metrics 20. Selecting project management tools—Knowing how to select project management tools 21. Tracking processes—Monitoring compliance of project team 22. Tracking project progress—Monitoring progress using metrics People Management Skills 23. Appraising performance—Evaluating teams to enhance performance 24. Handling intellectual property—Understanding the impact of critical issues 25. Holding effective meetings—Planning and running excellent meetings 26. Interaction and communication—Dealing with developers, upper management, and other teams 27. Leadership—Coaching project teams for optimal results 28. Managing change—Being an effective change agent 29. Negotiating successfully—Resolving conflicts and negotiating successfully 30. Planning careers—Structuring and giving career guidance 31. Presenting effectively—Using effective written and oral skills 32. Recruiting—Recruiting and interviewing team members successfully 33. Selecting a team—Choosing highly competent teams 34. Teambuilding—Forming, guiding, and maintaining an effective team Views of the competencies throughout the book: • Chapters are pegged to the sequence of activities in a software life cycle. • Every chapter in this book will begin by describing when (in what phase or phases) the sub- ject matter will be used during the SLC. For example, Chapter 16, “Eliciting Requirements,” points out that this activity occurs primarily in the requirements phase, although it may begin as early as the concept exploration phase and continue through the design phase. • Multiple competencies are addressed in each chapter. One or more of the 34 competencies will be most important to the subject of a chapter. In Chapter 16 the focus is on the skills of managing requirements, estimating cost, estimating effort, and presenting effectively, although others may be touched upon. Surveying the Foundations __________________________ Before explaining the product, process, and people categories where the 34 project management (PM) competencies have been grouped, it will be helpful to define a few basic terms in order to create a shared vocabulary. We will offer practical descriptions of software, management,
- 48. Surveying the Foundations 7 software engineering, project management, and process in addition to the important definitions listed in Box 1–1, to facilitate communication. Some of the terms can be confusing. For example, most of the 34 competencies that we address in this book apply equally well to projects and programs. Therefore, we may use the terms interchangeably when discussing them. Depending on the context, the abbreviation PM may mean: project manager, project management, program manager, or program management. What Is “Software Project Management”? This book is about the practice of software, project, and management. Which term is most important, and what do the words actually mean? And how do the 34 competencies fit into them? Many authors have proposed variations over the years, and the standards organizations themselves don’t always agree. We need some practical definitions that fit our circumstances. The following is a simple interpretation of these for our purposes: Software is the program(s) that is (are) the product of a (software engineering) project. (See Box 1–2.) For software, we will rely on the Software Engineering Institute (SEI) and the Insti- tute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), with supporting information on quality coming from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the International Organization for Standards (ISO), the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the American Society for Quality (ASQ). BOX 1–1 Important Project Management Definitions Task: A generic term for work that is not included in the work breakdown structure, but potentially could be a further decomposition of work by the individuals responsible for that work. Also, the lowest level of effort on a project. Activity: An element of work performed during the course of a project. An activity normally has an expected duration, an expected cost, and expected resource requirements. Activities can be subdivided into tasks. Phase: A group of activities/tasks, producing a significant deliverable work product. Project: A unique, goal-oriented, time-bound, and constrained undertaking. Program: A large collection of related projects. System: An organized element acting as a whole.
- 49. 8 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION A project is a large or important undertaking that is planned. Calling it a “scheme” seems a little harsh. (See Box 1–3.) For project, we will rely on the Project Management Institute® (PMI®) and the IEEE. Management is the practice of executing and controlling the project. (See Box 1–4.) For man- agement we will turn to PMI® and the general practice of management as taught in Master of Business Administration (MBA) higher education. BOX 1–2 Software Definition Source: www.bartleby.com soft•ware The programs, routines, and symbolic languages that control the functioning of the hardware and direct its operation. BOX 1–3 Project Definition Source: www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary proj•ect 1. a specific plan or design: SCHEME 2. a planned undertaking: as (a) a definitely formulated piece of research (b) a large usually government-supported undertaking (c) a task or problem engaged in usually by a group of students to supplement and apply classroom studies BOX 1–4 Management Definition Source: www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary man•age•ment 1. the act or art of managing: the conducting or supervising of something (as a business) 2. judicious use of means to accomplish an end 3. the collective body of those who manage or direct an enterprise
- 50. Surveying the Foundations 9 Simple as it sounds, the phrase software project management requires considerable study for the competencies associated with each word. As described in Figure 1–3, the 34 competencies are divided into product, project, and people skills, which correlate to the terms in the title of this book, “software,” “project,” and “management,” respectively. Although the term “quality” appears in the title, there is not a separate competencies category for quality skills, as they per- meate the entire set of competencies. What Is Software Engineering? According to Barry Boehm, software engineering is: A practical application of scientific knowl- edge in the design and construction of computer programs and the associated documentation required to develop, operate, and maintain them.1 IEEE defines it as: a systematic approach to the development, operation, maintenance, and retirement of software.2 And Stephen Schach describes software engineering as: a discipline whose aim is the production of quality soft- ware, software that is delivered on time, within budget, and that satisfies its requirements.3 We choose to use a blend of the preceding definitions to reflect the viewpoint of the software project manager: Software engineering is a disciplined, systematic approach to the development, operation, maintenance, and retirement of software through the practical application of scien- tific knowledge and processes. What Is a Project? Although we just examined the phrase software project management through dictionary defini- tions and professional standards organizations descriptions, the individual terms are impor- tant enough to bear further investigation. Two noted authors of MBA textbooks and specialized courses in project management pro- vide these definitions of “project”: Harold Kerzner defines a project to be any series of activities or tasks that have a specific objective to be completed within certain specifications, have defined start and end dates, have funding limits (if applicable), and consume resources (i.e., money, people, equipment).4 James Lewis views a project as a one-time job that has definite starting and ending points, clearly defined objectives, scope, and (usually) a budget; differentiated from repetitive activ- ities such as production, order processing, and so on; a special activity with very tactical goals.5 Given these definitions, we can see how the well-known “PM Triangle” (Figure 1–4) was created. A project strives to deliver a product of a given scope, within a given cost and sched- ule, with a certain degree of quality. The PM’s task is to balance performance (scope), time (schedule), and resources (cost). Yet, there are only so many degrees of freedom—it is rare that schedule, budget, and quality are abundant in unlimited quantities. We are forced to
- 51. 10 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION choose only one or two of the qualities as a primary pursuit. This is known in the vernacular as “the good-fast-cheap triangle—pick two.” We agree with quality guru Joseph Juran that a project is a problem scheduled for solution. Not specific to software, the Project Management Institute includes a fairly well-received definition in its PMBOK® Guide. PMI® refers to a project as: a temporary endeavor under- taken to create a unique product or service with a definite beginning and end, different from ongoing, repetitive operations and requiring progressive elaboration of characteristics.6 These project definitions have a few things in common: Objective. There must be a clearly defined goal or set of goals for the project. A project must accomplish something. If a project has multiple goals, they should be related to each other, and not conflict with one another. Start and end points. A project is a temporary endeavor. It must have a clearly defined beginning and ending, usually expressed as dates. Software maintenance is usually an ongoing operation, not a project, but may have well-defined projects that occur within it, such as specific releases. Uniqueness. A project is a one-time thing, not usually repeated exactly the same way. This does not imply that repeat performance is not a project. Building a house is usually classified as a project, even though contractors have built millions of houses. Although the pattern and process are basically the same (a template), there are enough differences in each house (such as lot and location, varying materials, and code and design changes) to distinguish it from others. Otherwise, it becomes an ongoing production line making Resources Cost P e r f o r m a n c e S c o p e T i m e S c h e d u l e Quality JAN 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 FIGURE 1–4 The Project Management Triangle
- 52. Surveying the Foundations 11 identical pieces in exactly the same way. The same is true for software professionals—we never build exactly the same software system, although we may copy it or port it. Constraints. A project has cost, schedule, and quality performance constraints. These are the “big three” of the PM triangle that must be balanced and managed to achieve success. So, our practical definition of this term in the software development realm is: A project is a unique, temporary endeavor with defined start and end dates to achieve one or more objec- tives within the constraints of cost, schedule, and quality performance. What Is a Program? Similar to a project, and often confused with it, is the program. Although many people refer to these interchangeably, the differences are mostly of scale. Let’s look at some existing defini- tions as we did for project. Kerzner defines a program as: the necessary first-level elements of a system (in the context of systems theory); a time-phased subsystem; and, borrowing from NASA, a relative series of undertakings that continue over a period of time (normally years), and that are designed to accomplish a broad technical or scientific goal in the long range plan.7 Don Shafer, in lectures to The University of Texas at Austin’s Software Quality Institute, has described a program as usually a large endeavor, encompassing a broad goal, which can be composed of a number of projects; for example, the U.S. space program (manned—Gemini, moon lander, space shuttle, orbital lab, etc.). The American Society for Quality™ (ASQ™) certifies software quality engineers by way of a Certified Software Quality Engineer (CSQE) exam. The Quality Council of Indiana pub- lishes a primer for the exam (the CSQE Primer) that describes a program to be a group of related projects managed to obtain collective benefits, often with a strategic goal, which may involve a series of repetitive or cyclical undertakings. PMI® succinctly states: A program is a group of related projects managed in a coordinated way. Programs usually include an element of ongoing activity.8 These definitions agree that a program is: Large. Programs are usually larger than projects and are often composed of projects. Lengthy. Programs usually span long time periods and extend beyond the time spans of projects. General. Programs may have only “ballpark” ending dates and objectives defined for them. Often the objective for the program is very broad, such as you would find in a class of software product.
- 53. 12 CHAPTER 1 ◗ INTRODUCTION So, our definition becomes: A program is a large, lengthy endeavor with indistinct ending dates and objectives, composed of related projects, managed cooperatively. What Is Project Management? PMI® defines PM as: a set of proven principles, methods and techniques for the effective planning, scheduling, controlling and tracking of deliverable-oriented work (results) that help to establish a sound historical basis for future planning of projects. Kerzner finds PM to be the planning, organizing, directing, and controlling of company resources (functional personnel) assigned to a specific project, for a relatively short-term objective that has been established to complete specific goals and objectives. Common concepts in those statements are: Management. Project management skills are a subset of general management skills. Skills. Project management skills apply management skills to the achievement of project objectives. Those skills include planning, organizing, scheduling, directing, con- trolling, and tracking. How does this relate to the Body of Knowledge? PMI describes the Project Management Body of Knowledge (e.g., critical path analysis and work breakdown structures) as intersect- ing the general management area of MBA knowledge (e.g., planning, organizing, staffing, executing, and controlling the operations of an ongoing enterprise), and both of those with the domain knowledge for the project (construction, biosciences, government contracting, consulting, etc.), as illustrated in Figure 1–5. For software projects, this domain area is usually some specialty of IT or Engineering (payroll, electrical engineering, automotive, real time). Generally Accepted PM Knowledge and Practice General Management Knowledge and Practice MBA Knowledge Project Management Body of Knowledge Domain Knowledge Application Area Knowledge and Practice FIGURE 1–5 PMBOK Intersection with MBA Knowledge and Domain
- 54. Some Other Useful Definitions 13 So, we have this definition of PM as it applies to software: Project management is a special- ization of general management studies that employs the standard management skills of planning, organizing, staffing, leading or directing, and controlling to achieve defined project objectives. Generally, the same definition works for Program Management as well. Some Other Useful Definitions ______________________ In addition to the terms software, project, management, software project management, software engineering, program, and project management, there are a few others that will be used repeatedly throughout the text. Next, we will briefly examine the terms process, task, activity, phase, and system. What Is a Process? PMI defines project management as being composed of proven principles, methods, and techniques. Most often, the methods and techniques are composed of work processes sup- ported by tools. Merriam-Webster’s definition of process is in Box 1–5. In Quality Process Management, Gabriel Pall defines the term as: a bounded set of interrelated activities that takes one or more kinds of inputs and creates outputs that are of value to the customer by means of one or more transformations.9 And IEEE simply states that a process is a sequence of steps performed for a given purpose. BOX 1–5 Process Definition Source: www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary pro•cess 1. something going on 2a. a natural phenomenon marked by gradual changes that lead toward a particular result: a natural continuing activity or function 2b. a series of actions or operations conducing to an end; especially: a continuous operation or treatment especially in manufacture
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- 56. not a certain exercise to be gone through as a sort of title to the remission of sins, but the deep and settled habit of the soul, giving seriousness, gravity, tenderness, brokenness, and profound humility, which shall overlap, underlie, and characterize our entire course. We seriously question if this aspect of the subject is sufficiently understood. Let not the reader mistake us. We do not mean for a moment to teach that the soul should be always bowed down under the sense of unforgiven sin. Far be the thought! But we greatly fear that some of us, in running away from legality on the question of repentance, have fallen into levity. This is a serious error. We may depend upon it that levity is no remedy for legality: were it proposed as such, we should have no hesitation in pronouncing the remedy much worse than the disease. Thank God we have His own sovereign remedy for levity, on the one hand, and legality on the other. "Truth,"—insisting upon "repentance," is the remedy for the former. "Grace"—publishing "remission of sins," is the remedy for the latter. And we cannot but believe that the more profound our repentance, the fuller will be our enjoyment of remission. We are inclined to judge that there is a sad lack of depth and seriousness in much of our modern preaching. In our anxiety to make the gospel simple, and salvation easy, we fail to press on the consciences of our hearers the holy claims of truth. If a preacher now-a-days were to call upon his hearers to "repent and turn to God, and to do works meet for repentance," he would, in certain circles, be pronounced legal, ignorant, below the mark, and such like. And yet this was precisely what the blessed apostle Paul did, as he himself tells us. Will any of our modern evangelists have the temerity to say that Paul was a legal or an ignorant preacher? We trust not. Paul carried with him the full, clear, precious gospel of God —the gospel of the grace, and the gospel of the glory. He preached the kingdom of God—He unfolded the glorious mystery of the Church—yea, that mystery was specially committed to him. But let all preachers remember that Paul preached repentance. He called upon sinners to judge themselves—to repent in dust and
- 57. ashes, as was meet and right they should. He himself had learnt the true meaning of repentance. He had not only judged himself once in a way, but he lived in the spirit of self-judgment. It was the habit of his soul, the attitude of his heart, and it gave a depth, solidity, seriousness and solemnity to his preaching of which we modern preachers know but little. We do not believe that Paul's repentance ended with the three days and three nights of blindness after his conversion. He was a self-judged man all his life long. Did this hinder his enjoyment of the grace of God or of the preciousness of Christ? Nay, it gave depth and intensity to his enjoyment. All this, we feel persuaded, demands our most serious consideration. We greatly dread the light, airy, superficial style of much of our modern preaching. It sometimes seems to us as if the gospel were brought into utter contempt and the sinner led to suppose that he is really conferring a very great favor upon God in accepting salvation at His hands. Now we most solemnly protest against this. It is dishonoring to God, and lowering His gospel; and, as might be expected, its moral effect on those who profess to be converted is most deplorable. It superinduces levity, self-indulgence, worldliness, vanity, and folly. Sin is not felt to be the dreadful thing it is in the sight of God. Self is not judged. The world is not given up. The gospel that is preached is what may be called "salvation made easy" to the flesh—the most terrible thing we can possibly conceive— terrible in its effect upon the soul—terrible in its results in the life. God's sentence upon the flesh and the world gets no place in the preaching to which we refer. People are offered a salvation which leaves self and the world practically unjudged, and the consequence is, those who profess to be converted by this gospel exhibit a lightness and unsubduedness perfectly shocking to people of serious piety. Man must take his true place before God, and that is the place of self-judgment, contrition of heart, real sorrow for sin, and true confession. It is here the gospel meets him. The fulness of God ever waits on an empty vessel, and a truly repentant soul is the empty
- 58. vessel into which all the fulness and grace of God can flow in saving power. The Holy Ghost will make the sinner feel and own his real condition. It is He alone who can do so: but He uses preaching to this end. He brings the word of God to bear on man's conscience. The Word is His hammer, wherewith He breaks the rock in pieces— His plowshare, wherewith He breaks up the fallow ground. He makes the furrow, and then casts in the incorruptible seed, to germinate and fructify to the glory of God. True, the furrow, how deep soever it may be, can produce no fruit. It is the seed, and not the furrow; but there must be the furrow for all that. It is not, need we say, that there is anything meritorious in the sinner's repentance. To say so could only be regarded as audacious falsehood. Repentance is not a good work whereby the sinner merits the favor of God. All this view of the subject is utterly and fatally false. True repentance is the discovery and hearty confession of our utter ruin and guilt. It is the finding out that my whole life has been a lie, and that I myself am a liar. This is serious work. There is no flippancy or levity when a soul is brought to this. A penitent soul in the presence of God is a solemn reality; and we cannot but feel that were we more governed by the terms of "the great commission," we should more solemnly, earnestly and constantly call upon men "to repent and turn to God and do works meet for repentance"—we should preach "repentance" as well as "remission of sins." PART II. Since writing our last paper, we have been much interested in the way in which repentance is presented in those inimitable parables in Luke xv. There we learn, in a manner the most touching and convincing, not only the abiding and universal necessity,—the moral fitness in every case of true repentance,—but also that it is grateful to the heart of God. Our Lord, in His marvelous reply to the scribes and Pharisees, declares that "there is joy in heaven over one sinner
- 59. that repenteth." And again, "Likewise, I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth." Now this gives us a very elevated view of the subject. It is one thing to see that repentance is binding upon man, and another and very much higher thing to see that it is grateful to God. "Thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." A broken heart, a contrite spirit, a repentant mind, gives joy to God. Let us ponder this fact. The scribes and Pharisees murmured because Jesus received sinners. How little they understood Him! How little they knew of the object that brought Him down into this dark and sinful world! How little they knew of themselves! It was the "lost" that Jesus came to seek. But scribes and Pharisees did not think themselves lost. They thought they were all right. They did not want a Saviour. They were thoroughly unbroken, unrepentant, self- confident: and hence they had never afforded one atom of joy in heaven. All the learning of the scribes, and all the righteousness of the Pharisees, could not waken up a single note of joy in the presence of the angels of God. They were like the elder son in the parable who said, "Lo, these many years do I serve thee, neither transgressed I at any time thy commandment; and yet thou never gavest me a kid, that I might make merry with my friends." Here we have a true specimen of an unbroken heart and an unrepentant spirit—a man thoroughly satisfied with himself. Miserable object! He had never touched a chord in the Father's heart —never drawn out the Father's love—never felt the Father's embrace —never received the Father's welcome. How could he? He had never felt himself lost. He was full of himself, and therefore had no room for the Father's love. He did not feel that he owed anything, and hence he had nothing to be forgiven. It rather seemed to him that his father was his debtor. "Lo, these many years do I serve thee; and yet thou never gavest me a kid." He had not received his wages.
- 60. What egregious folly! And yet it is just the same with every unrepentant soul—every one who is building upon his own righteousness. He really makes God his debtor. "I have served Thee; but I have never gotten what I earned." Miserable notion! The man who talks of his duties, his doings, his sayings, his givings, is really insulting God. But on the other hand, the man who comes with a broken heart, a contrite spirit, repentant, self-judged—that is the man who gives joy to the heart of God. And why? Simply because such a one feels his need of God. Here lies the grand moral secret of the whole matter. To apprehend this is to grasp the full truth on the great question of repentance. A God of love desires to make His way to the sinner's heart, but there is no room for Him so long as that heart is hard and impenitent. But when the sinner is brought to the end of himself, when he sees himself a helpless, hopeless wreck, when he sees the utter emptiness, hollowness and vanity of all earthly things; when like the prodigal he comes to himself and feels the depth and reality of his need, then there is room in his heart for God, and—marvelous truth!—God delights to come and fill it. "To this man will I look." To whom? To the man who does his duty, keeps the law, does his best, lives up to his light? Nay; but "to him who is of a contrite spirit." It will perhaps be said that the words just quoted apply to Israel. Primarily, they do; but morally they apply to every contrite heart on the face of the earth. And, further, it cannot be said that Luke xv. applies specially to Israel. It applies to all. "There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that"—What? Does his duty? Nay, it does not even say, "that believeth." No doubt believing is essential in every case; but the interesting point here is that a truly repentant sinner causes joy in heaven. A person may say, "I fear I do not believe." Well, but do you repent? Have your eyes been opened to see your true condition before God? Have you taken your true place before God as utterly lost? If so, you are one of those over whom there is joy in heaven. What gave joy to the shepherd's heart? Was it the ninety and nine sheep that went not
- 61. astray? Nay, it was finding the lost sheep.[17] What gave joy to the woman's heart? Was it the nine pieces in her possession? Nay, it was finding the one lost piece. What gave joy to the father's heart? Was it the service and the obedience of the elder son? Nay, it was getting back his lost son. A repentant, broken-hearted, returning sinner wakens up heaven's joy. "Let us eat and be merry." Why? Because the elder son has been working in the fields and doing his duty? No; but "This my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found." All this is perfectly wonderful. Indeed, it is so wonderful that if we had it not from the lips of Him who is the Truth, and on the eternal page of divine inspiration, we could not believe it. But, blessed be God, there it stands, and none can gainsay it. There shines the glorious truth that a poor, self-convicted, broken-hearted, penitent, though hell-deserving sinner, gives joy to the heart of God. Let people talk as they will about keeping the law and doing their duty: it may go for what it is worth; but be it remembered there is no such clause within the covers of the volume of God—no such sentence ever dropped from the lips of our Lord Jesus Christ as "There is joy in heaven over one sinner that does his duty." A sinner's duty! What is it? "God commandeth all men everywhere to repent." What is it that can really define our duty? Surely the divine command. Well, here it is, and there is no getting over it. God's command to all men, in every place, is to repent. His commandment binds them to do it; His goodness leads them to it; His judgment warns them to it; and, above all, and most marvelous of all, He assures us that our repentance gives joy to His heart. A penitent heart is an object of profoundest interest to the mind of God, because that heart is morally prepared to receive what God delights to bestow, namely, "remission of sins"—yea, all the fulness of divine love. A man might spend millions in the cause of religion and philanthropy, and not afford one atom of joy in heaven. What are millions of money to God? A single penitential tear is more precious to Him than all the wealth of the universe. All the offerings of an
- 62. unbroken heart are a positive insult to God; but a single sigh from the depths of a contrite spirit goes up as fragrant incense to His throne and to His heart. No man can meet God on the ground of duty; but God can meet any man—the very chief of sinners—on the ground of repentance, for that is man's true place; and we may say with all possible confidence that when the sinner, as he is, meets God as He is, the whole question is settled once and forever. "I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the Lord, and Thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin." The moment man takes his true place—the place of repentance —God meets him with a full forgiveness, a divine and everlasting righteousness. It is His joy to do so. It gratifies His heart and it glorifies His name to pardon, justify and accept a penitent soul that simply believes in Jesus. The very moment the prophet cried, "Woe is me; for I am undone,"—"Then flew one of the seraphims with a live coal from off the altar," to touch his lips, and to purge his sins (Isa. vi. 5-7). Thus it is always. The fulness of God ever waits on an empty vessel. If I am full of myself, full of my own fancied goodness, my own morality, my own righteousness, I have no room for God, no room for Christ. "He filleth the hungry with good things; but the rich He hath sent empty away." A self-emptied soul can be filled with the fulness of God; but if God sends a man empty away, whither can he go to be filled? All Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation, goes to prove the deep blessedness as well as the moral necessity of repentance. It is the grand turning-point in the soul's history—a great moral epoch which sheds its influence over the whole of one's after life. It is not, we repeat, a transient exercise, but an abiding moral condition. We are not now speaking of how repentance is produced; we are speaking of what it is according to Scripture, and of the absolute need of it for every creature under heaven. It is the sinner's true place; and when through grace he takes it, he is met by the fulness of God's salvation.
- 63. And here we see the lovely connection between the first and second clauses of "the great commission," namely, "repentance and remission of sins." They are inseparably linked together. It is not that the most profound and genuine repentance forms the meritorious ground of remission of sins. To say or to think so would be to set aside the atonement of our Lord Jesus Christ, for in that, and in that alone, have we the divine ground on which God can righteously forgive us our sins. This we shall see more fully when we come to consider the "basis" of "the great commission." We are now occupied with the commission itself; and in it we see those two divinely settled facts, repentance and remission of sins. The holy apostles of our Lord and Saviour were charged to preach among all nations—to declare in the ears of every creature under heaven "repentance and remission of sins." Every man, be he Jew or Gentile, is absolutely commanded by God to repent; and every repentant soul is privileged to receive, on the spot, the full and everlasting remission of sins. And we may add, the deeper and more abiding the work of repentance, the deeper and more abiding will be the enjoyment of remission of sins. The contrite soul lives in the very atmosphere of divine forgiveness; and as it inhales that atmosphere, it shrinks with ever-increasing horror from sin in every shape and form. Let us turn for a moment to the Acts of the Apostles, and see how Christ's ambassadors carried out the second part of His blessed commission. Hear the apostle of the circumcision addressing the Jews on the day of Pentecost. We cannot attempt to quote the whole of his address; we merely give the few words of application at the close. "Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God hath made that same Jesus whom ye have crucified both Lord and Christ." Here the preacher bears down upon the consciences of his hearers with the solemn fact that they had proved themselves to be at issue with God Himself about His Christ. What a tremendous fact! It was not merely that they had broken the law, rejected the prophets,
- 64. refused the testimony of John the Baptist; but they had actually crucified the Lord of glory, the eternal Son of God. "Now when they heard this, they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men, brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ, for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost" (Acts ii. 36-38). Here are the two parts of the great commission brought out in all their distinctness and power. The people are charged with the most awful sin that could be committed, namely, the murder of the Son of God; they are called upon to repent, and assured of full remission of sins and the gift of the Holy Ghost. What wondrous grace shines forth in all this! The very people that had mocked and insulted the Son of God, and crucified Him, even these, if truly repentant, were assured of the complete pardon of all their sins, and of this crowning sin amongst the rest. Such is the wondrous grace of God—such the mighty efficacy of the blood of Christ—such the clear and authoritative testimony of the Holy Ghost—such the glorious terms of "the great commission." But let us turn for a moment to Acts iii. Here the preacher, after charging his hearers with this awful act of wickedness against God, even the rejection and murder of His Son, adds these remarkable words: "And now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers. But those things, which God before had showed by the mouth of all His prophets, that Christ should suffer, He hath so fulfilled. Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out." It is not possible to conceive anything higher or fuller than the grace that shines out here. It is a part of the divine response to the prayer of Christ on the cross, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." This surely is royal grace. It is victorious grace—grace reigning through righteousness. It was impossible that such a prayer should fall to the ground. It was answered in part on the day of Pentecost, It will be answered in full at a future day, for "All Israel
- 65. shall be saved; as it is written, There shall come out of Zion the Deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob." But mark particularly the words "Those things which God before had shewed ... He hath so fulfilled." Here the preacher brings in God's side of the matter: and this is salvation. To see only man's part in the cross would be eternal judgment. To see God's part, and to rest in it is eternal life, full remission of sins, divine righteousness, everlasting glory. The reader will doubtless be reminded here of the touching scene between Joseph and his brethren. There is a striking analogy between Acts iii. and Genesis xiv. "Now therefore," says Joseph, "be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither; for God did send me before you to preserve life.... And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God." But when were these words uttered? Not until the guilty brethren had felt and owned their guilt. Repentance preceded the remission. "They said one to another, We are verily guilty concerning our brother, in that we saw the anguish of his soul, when he besought us, and we would not hear; therefore is this distress come upon us." Joseph "spake roughly" to his brethren at the first. He brought them through deep waters, and made them feel and confess their guilt. But the very moment they took the ground of repentance, he took the ground of forgiveness. The penitent brethren were met by a pardoning Joseph, and the whole house of Pharaoh was made to ring with the joy which filled the heart of Joseph on getting back to his bosom the very men that had flung him into the pit. What an illustration of "repentance and remission of sins!" It is ever thus. It is the joy of the heart of God to forgive us our sins. He delights in causing the full tide of His pardoning love to flow into the broken and contrite heart.
- 66. Yes, beloved reader, if you have been brought to feel the burden of your guilt, then be assured it is your privilege this very moment to receive a divine and everlasting remission of all your sins. The blood of Jesus Christ has perfectly settled the question of your guilt, and you are now invited to rejoice in the God of your salvation. PART III. We shall now turn for a few moments to the ministry of the apostle of the Gentiles, and see how he fulfilled the great commission. We have already heard him on the subject of "repentance." Let us hear him also on the great question of "remission of sins." Paul was not of the twelve. He did not receive his commission from Christ on earth, but, as he himself distinctly and repeatedly tells us, from Christ in heavenly glory. Some have spent not a little time and pains in laboring to prove that he was of the twelve, and that the election of Matthias in Acts i. was a mistake. But it is labor sadly wasted, and only proves an entire misunderstanding of Paul's position and ministry. He was raised up for a special object, and made the depositary of a special truth which had never been made known to any one before, namely, the truth of the Church—the one body composed of Jew and Gentile, incorporated by the Holy Ghost, and linked, by His personal indwelling, to the risen and glorified Head in heaven. Paul received his own special commission, of which he gives a very beautiful statement in his address to Agrippa, in Acts xxvi., "Whereupon, as I went to Damascus, with authority and commission from the chief priests,"—what a different "commission" he received ere he entered Damascus!—"at midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And I said, Who art thou, Lord?
- 67. And He said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest." Here the glorious truth of the intimate union of believers with the glorified Man in heaven, though not stated, is beautifully and forcibly implied. "But rise, and stand upon thy feet, for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee; delivering thee from the people and the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee, to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive remission of sins" (the same word as in the commission to the twelve in Luke xxiv.) "and inheritance among them which are sanctified, by faith that is in Me."[18] What depth and fulness in these words! What a comprehensive statement of man's condition! What a blessed presentation of the resources of divine grace! There is a very remarkable harmony between this commission to Paul and that to the twelve in Luke xxiv. It will perhaps be said there is nothing about repentance. True, the word does not occur; but we have the moral reality, and that with singular force and fulness. What mean the words, "To open their eyes?" Do they not most certainly involve the discovery of our condition? Assuredly. A man who has his eyes opened is brought to the knowledge of himself, the knowledge of his condition, the knowledge of his ways; and this is true repentance. It is a wonderful moment in a man's history when his eyes are opened. It is the grand crisis, the momentous epoch, the one turning-point. Till then he is blind—morally and spiritually blind. He cannot see a single divine object. He has no perception of anything pertaining to God, to Christ, to heaven. This is truly humbling to proud human nature. Think of a clear- headed, highly educated, deeply learned, intellectual man, a profound thinker, a powerful reasoner, a thorough philosopher, who has won the honors, the medals, the degrees, that this world's universities can bestow; and yet he is blind to everything spiritual, heavenly, divine. He gropes in moral darkness. He thinks he sees,
- 68. assumes the right to judge and pronounce upon things, even upon Scripture and upon God Himself. He undertakes to decide what is fitting for God to say and to do. He sets up his own mind as the measure in the things of God. He reasons upon immortality, upon eternal life, and eternal punishment. He deems himself perfectly competent to give judgment in reference to all these solemn and weighty matters; and all the while his eyes have never been opened. How much is his judgment worth? Nothing! Who would take the opinion of a man who, if his eyes were only opened, would reverse that opinion in reference to everything heavenly and divine? Who would think for a moment of being guided by a blind man? But how do we know that every man in his natural, unconverted state is blind? Because, according to Paul's commission, the very first thing which the gospel is to do for him is "to open his eyes." This proves, beyond all question, that he must be blind. Paul was sent to the people and to the Gentiles—that is, to the whole human family— to open their eyes. This proves, to a divine demonstration, that all are by nature blind. But there is more than this. Man is not only blind, but he is in "darkness." Supposing for a moment that a person has his eyesight, of what use is it to him if he is in the dark? It is the double statement as to man's state and position. As to his state, he is blind. As to his position, he is in darkness; and when his eyes are opened, and divine light streams in upon his soul, he then judges himself and his ways according to God. He sees his folly, his guilt, his rebellion, his wild, infidel reasonings, his foolish notions, the vanity of his mind, his pride and ambition, his selfishness and worldliness—all these things are judged and abhorred. He repents, and turns right round to the One who has opened his eyes and poured in a flood of living light upon his heart and conscience. But, further, not only is man—every man—Jew and Gentile, blind and in darkness, but, as if to give the climax of all, he is under the power of Satan. This gives a terrible idea of man's condition. He is the slave of the devil. He does not believe this. He imagines himself free—
- 69. thinks he is his own master—fancies he can go where he pleases, do what he likes, think for himself, speak and act as an independent being. But he is the bondslave of another, he is sold under sin, Satan is his lord and master. Thus Scripture speaks, and it cannot be broken. Man may refuse to believe, but that cannot in the least change the fact. A condemned criminal at the bar may refuse to believe the testimony from the witness table, the verdict from the jury-box, the sentence from the bench; but that in nowise alters his terrible condition. He is a condemned criminal all the same. So with man as a sinner; he may refuse the plain testimony of Scripture, but that testimony remains notwithstanding. Even if the thousand millions that people this globe were to deny the truth of God's word, that Word would still stand unmoved. Scripture does not depend for its truth upon man's belief. It is true whether he believes it or not. Blessed forever is the man who believes; doomed forever is the man who refuses to believe; but the word of God is settled forever in heaven, and it is to be received on its own authority, apart from all human thoughts for or against it. This is a grand fact, and one demanding the profound attention of every soul. Everything depends upon it. The word of God claims our belief because it is His word. If we want any authority to confirm the truth of God's word, we are in reality rejecting God's word altogether, and resting on man's word. A man may say, "How do I know that the Bible is the word of God?" We reply, It carries its own divine credentials with it; and if these credentials do not convince, all the human authority under the sun is perfectly worthless. If the whole population of the earth were to stand before me, and assure me of the truth of God's word, and that I were to believe on their authority, it would not be saving faith at all. It would be faith in men, and not faith in God; but the faith that saves is the faith that believes what God says because God says it. It is not that we undervalue human testimony, or reject what are called the external evidences of the truth of the Holy Scripture. All these things must go for what they are worth; they are by no means
- 70. essential in laying the foundation of saving faith. We are perfectly sure that all genuine history, all true science, all sound human evidence, must go to establish the divine authenticity of the Bible; but we do not rest our faith upon them, but upon the Scriptures to which they bear witness; for if all human evidence, all science, and every page of history, were to speak against Scripture, we should utterly and absolutely reject them; reverently and implicitly believe it. Is this narrow? Be it so. It is the blessed narrowness in which we gladly find our peace and our portion forever. It is the narrowness that refuses to admit the weight of a feather as an addition to the word of God. If this be narrowness,—we repeat it with emphasis, and from the very centre of our ransomed being,—let it be ours forever. If to be broad we must look to man to confirm the truth of God's word, then away with such broadness; it is the broad way that leadeth straight down to hell. No, reader, your life, your salvation, your everlasting peace, blessedness and glory, depend upon your taking God at His word, and believing what He says because He says it. This is faith—living, saving, precious faith. May you possess it! God's word, then, most distinctly declares that man in his natural, unrenewed, unconverted state is Satan's bondslave. It speaks of Satan as "the god of this world," as "the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." It speaks of man as "led captive by the devil at his will." Hence, in Paul's commission, the third thing which the gospel is to do is to turn man from "the power of Satan to God." Thus his eyes are opened; divine light comes streaming in; the power of Satan is broken, and the delivered one finds himself, peacefully and happily, in the presence of God. Like the demoniac in Mark v., he is delivered from his ruthless tyrant, his cruel master; his chains are broken and gone; he is clothed and in his right mind, and sitting at the feet of Jesus. What a glorious deliverance! It is worthy of God in every aspect of it, and in all its results. The poor blind slave, led captive by the devil, is set free; and not only so, but he is brought to God, pardoned, accepted, and endowed with an eternal inheritance among the
- 71. sanctified. And all this is by faith, through grace. It is proclaimed in the gospel of God to every creature under heaven—not one is excluded. The great commission, whether we read it in Luke xxiv. or in Acts xxvi., assures us that this most precious, most glorious salvation is unto all. Let us, ere we close this paper, listen for a moment to our apostle as he discharges his blessed commission in the synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia. Most gladly would we transcribe the whole of his precious discourse, but our limited space compels us to confine ourselves to the powerful appeal at the end. "Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man" (Jesus Christ, crucified, risen, and glorified) "is preached"—not promised in the future, but preached now, announced as a present reality—is preached "unto you the remission of sins. And by Him all who believe ARE justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses." From these words we learn, in the clearest possible manner, that every soul in that synagogue was called upon, there and then, to receive into his heart the blessed message which fell from the preacher's lips. Not one was excluded. "Unto you is the word of this salvation sent." If any one had asked the apostle if the message was intended for him, what would have been the reply? "Unto you is the word of this salvation sent." Was there no preliminary question to be settled? Not one. All the preliminaries had been settled at the cross. Was there no question as to election or predestination? Not a syllable about either in the whole range of this magnificent and comprehensive discourse. But is there no such question? Not in that "great commission" whereof we speak. No doubt the grand truth of election shines in its proper place on the page of inspiration. But what is its proper and divinely appointed place? Most assuredly not in the preaching of the evangelist, but in the ministry of the teacher or pastor. When the apostle sits down to instruct believers, we hear such words as these:
- 72. "Whom He did foreknow, He also did predestinate." And again: "Knowing, brethren beloved, your election of God." But let it never be lost sight of, when he stands up as an ambassador of Christ, the herald of salvation, he proclaims in the most absolute and unqualified manner a present, a personal, a perfect salvation to every creature under heaven; and every one who heard him was responsible there and then to believe. And every one who reads him now is equally so. If any one had presumed to tell the preacher that his hearers were not responsible, that they were powerless, and could not believe—that it was only deceiving them to call upon them to believe—what would have been his reply? We think we are warranted in saying that a full and overwhelming reply to this, and every such preposterous objection, is wrapped up in the solemn appeal with which the apostle closes his address, "Beware, therefore, lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the prophets: Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish; for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you." PART IV. Having in the former papers dwelt a little upon the terms of "the great commission," we shall now, in dependence upon divine teaching, seek to unfold the truth as to the basis. It is of the greatest importance to have a clear understanding of the solid ground on which "repentance and remission of sins" are announced to every creature under heaven. This we have distinctly laid down in our Lord's own words, "It behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day." Here lies, in its impregnable strength, the foundation of the glorious commission whereof we speak. God—blessed forever be His holy name—has been pleased to set before us with all possible clearness the moral ground on which He commands all men everywhere to
- 73. repent, and the righteous ground on which He can proclaim to every repentant soul the perfect remission of sins. We have already had occasion to guard the reader against the false notion that any amount of repentance on the part of the sinner could possibly form the meritorious ground of forgiveness. But inasmuch as we write for those who may be ignorant of the foundations of the gospel, we feel bound to put things in the very simplest possible form, so that all may understand. We know how prone the human heart is to build upon something of our own—if not upon good works, at least upon our penitential exercises. Hence, it becomes our bounden duty to set forth the precious truth of the atoning work of our Lord Jesus Christ as the only righteous ground of the forgiveness of sins. True, all men are commanded to repent. It is meet and right that they should. How could it be otherwise? How can we look at that accursed tree on which the Son of God bore the judgment of sin and not see the absolute necessity of repentance? How can we hearken to that solemn cry breaking forth from amid the shadows of Calvary, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" and not own, from the deepest depths of our moral being, the moral fitness of repentance? If indeed sin is so terrible, so absolutely hateful to God, so perfectly intolerable to His holy nature, that He had to bruise His well beloved and only begotten Son on the cross in order to put it away, does it not well become the sinner to judge himself, and repent in dust and ashes? Had the blessed Lord to endure the hiding of God's countenance because of our sins, and we not be broken, self-judged and subdued on account of these sins? Shall we with impenitent heart hear the glad tidings of full and free forgiveness of sins—a forgiveness which cost nothing less than the unutterable horrors and agonies of the cross? Shall we, with flippant tongue, profess to have peace—a peace purchased by the ineffable sufferings of the Son of God? If it was absolutely necessary that Christ should suffer for our sins, is it not morally fitting that we should repent of them?
- 74. Nor is this all. It is not merely that it becomes us, once in a way, to repent. There is far more than this. The spirit of self-judgment, genuine contrition and true humility must characterize every one who enters at all into the profound mystery of the sufferings of Christ. Indeed, it is only as we contemplate and deeply ponder those sufferings that we can form anything approaching to a just estimate of the hatefulness of sin on the one hand, and the divine fulness and perfectness of remission on the other. Such was the hatefulness of sin, that it was absolutely necessary that Christ should suffer; but— all praise to redeeming love!—such were the sufferings of Christ, that God can forgive us our sins according to the infinite value which He attaches to those sufferings. Both go together; and both, we may add, exert a formative influence, under the powerful ministry of the Holy Ghost, on the Christian character from first to last. Our sins are all forgiven; but "it behooved Christ to suffer;" and hence, while our peace flows like a river, we must never forget the soul-subduing fact that the basis of our peace was laid in the ineffable sufferings of the Son of God. This is most needful, owing to the excessive levity of our hearts. We are ready enough to receive the truth of the remission of sins, and then go on in an easy, self-indulgent, world-loving spirit, thus proving how feebly we enter into the sufferings of our blessed Lord, or into the real nature of sin. All this is truly deplorable, and calls for the deepest exercise of soul. There is a sad lack amongst us of that real brokenness of spirit which ought to characterize those who owe their present peace and everlasting felicity and glory to the sufferings of Christ. We are light, frivolous, and self-willed. We avail ourselves of the death of Christ to save us from the consequences of our sins, but our ways do not exhibit the practical effect of that death in its application to ourselves. We do not walk as those who are dead with Christ—who have crucified the flesh with its affections and lusts—who are delivered from this present evil world. In a word, our Christianity is sadly deficient in depth of tone; it is shallow, feeble, and stunted. We profess to know a great deal of truth; but it
- 75. is to be feared it is too much in theory—therefore not turned to practical account as it should be. It may, perhaps, be asked, What has all this to do with "the great commission?" It has to do with it in a very intimate way. We are deeply impressed with a sense of the superficial way in which the work of evangelization is carried on at the present day. Not only are the terms of the great commission overlooked, but the basis seems to be little understood. The sufferings of Christ are not duly dwelt upon and unfolded. The atoning work of Christ is presented in its sufficiency for the sinner's need—and no doubt this is a signal mercy. We have to be profoundly thankful when preachers and writers hold up the precious blood of Christ as the sinner's only plea, instead of preaching up rites, ceremonies, sacraments, good works (falsely so called), creeds, churches, religious ordinances, and such- like delusions. All this is most fully admitted. But at the same time we must give expression to our deep and solemn conviction that much of our modern evangelical preaching is extremely shallow and bald; and the result of that preaching is seen in the light, airy, flippant style of many of our so-called converts. Some of us seem so intensely anxious to make everything so easy and simple for the sinner that the preaching becomes extremely one-sided. Thanks be to God, He has indeed made all easy and simple for the needy, broken-hearted, penitent sinner. He has left him nothing to do, nothing to give. It is "to him that worketh not, but believeth on Him that justifieth the ungodly." It is not possible for any evangelist to go too far in stating this side of the question. No one can go beyond Rom. iv. 5 in setting forth salvation by free grace, through faith, without works of any sort or description. But then, we must remember that the blessed apostle Paul—the greatest evangelist that ever lived, except his divine Master—did not confine himself to this one side; and neither should we. He pressed the claims of divine holiness. He called upon sinners to judge
- 76. themselves, and he called upon believers to subdue and deny themselves. He did not preach a gospel that left people at ease in the world, satisfied with themselves, and occupied with earthly things. He did not tell people that they were saved from the flames of hell and were therefore free to enjoy the follies of earth. This was not Paul's gospel. He preached a gospel which, while it fully met the sinner's deepest need, did also most fully maintain God's glory—a gospel which, while it came down to the very lowest point of the sinner's condition, did not leave him there. Paul's gospel not only set forth a full, clear, unqualified, unconditional, present forgiveness of sins, but also, just as fully and clearly, the condemnation of sin, and the believer's entire deliverance from this present evil world. The death of Christ, in Paul's gospel, not only assured the soul of complete deliverance from the just consequences of sins, as seen in the judgment of God in the lake of fire, but it also set forth, with magnificent fulness and clearness, the complete snapping of every link with the world, and entire deliverance from the present power and rule of sin. Now, here is precisely where the lamentable deficiency and culpable one-sidedness of our modern preaching are so painfully manifest. The gospel which one often hears nowadays is, if we may be allowed the use of such a term, a carnal, earthly, worldly gospel. It offers a kind of ease, but it is fleshly, worldly ease. It gives confidence, but it is rather a carnal confidence than the confidence of faith. It is not a delivering gospel. It leaves people in the world, instead of bringing them to God. And what must be the result of all this? We can hardly bear to contemplate it. We greatly fear that, should our Lord tarry, the fruit of much of what is going on around us will be a terrible combination of the very highest profession with the very lowest practice. It cannot be otherwise. High truth taken up in a light, carnal spirit tends to lull the conscience and quash all godly exercise of soul as to our habits and ways in daily life. In this way people escape from
- 77. legality only to plunge into levity, and truly the last state is worse than the first. We earnestly hope that the Christian reader may not feel unduly depressed by the perusal of these lines. God knows we would not pen a line to discourage the feeblest lamb in all the precious flock of Christ. We desire to write in the divine presence. We have entreated the Lord that every line of this paper, and of all our papers, should come directly from Himself to the reader. Hence, therefore, we must ask the reader—and we do so most faithfully and affectionately—to ponder what is here put before him. We cannot hide from him the fact that we are most seriously impressed with the condition of things around us. We feel that the tone and aspect of much of the so-called Christianity of this our day are such as to awaken the gravest apprehension in the mind of every thoughtful observer. We perceive a terribly rapid development of the features of the last days, as detailed by the pen of inspiration. "This know also that, in the last days, perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection, truce-breakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away" (2 Tim. iii. 1- 5). What an appalling picture! How solemn to find the same evils that characterize the heathen, as recorded in Rom. i., reproduced in connection with the profession of Christianity! Should not the thought of this awaken the most serious apprehensions in the mind of every Christian? Should it not lead all who are engaged in the holy service of preaching and teaching amongst us to examine themselves closely as to the tone and character of their ministry, and as to their own private walk and ways? We want a more searching style of ministry on the part of evangelists and teachers. There is a lack of hortatory and prophetic ministry. By prophetic ministry we
- 78. mean that which brings the conscience into the immediate presence of God. (See 1 Cor. xiv. 1-3, 23-26.) In this we are lamentably deficient. There is a vast amount of objective truth in circulation amongst us—more, perhaps, than ever since the days of the apostles. Books and periodicals by hundreds and thousands, tracts by thousands and millions, are sent forth annually. Do we object to this? Nay; we bless God for it. But we cannot shut our eyes to the fact that by far the largest proportion of this vast mass of literature is addressed to the intelligence, and not enough to the heart and conscience. Now, while it is quite right to enlighten the understanding, it is quite wrong to neglect the heart and conscience. We feel it to be a most serious thing to allow the intelligence to outstrip the conscience—to have more truth in the head than in the heart—to profess principles which do not govern the practice. Nothing can be more dangerous. It tends to place us directly in the hands of Satan. If the conscience be not kept tender, if the heart be not governed by the fear of God, if a broken and contrite spirit be not cultivated, there is no telling what depths we may plunge into. When the conscience is kept in a sound condition, and the heart is humble and true, then every fresh ray of light that shines in upon the understanding ministers strength to the soul and tends to elevate and sanctify our whole moral being. This is what every earnest spirit must crave. All true-hearted Christians must long for increased personal holiness, more likeness to Christ, more genuine devotedness of heart, a deepening, strengthening and expanding of the kingdom of God in the soul— that kingdom which is righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. May we all have grace to seek after these divine realities! May we diligently cultivate them in our own private life, and seek in every possible way to promote them in all those with whom we come in contact! Thus shall we in some measure stem the tide of hollow
- 79. profession around us, and be a living testimony against the powerless form of godliness so sadly dominant in this our day. Christian reader! art thou one with us in this current of thought and feeling? If so, then let us most earnestly entreat thee to join us in earnest prayer to God that He will graciously raise our spiritual tone by drawing us closer to Himself, and filling our hearts with love to Him and earnest desire for the promotion of His glory, the progress of His cause, and the prosperity of His people. PART V. In pursuing our subject, we have yet to consider the authority and the sphere of "the great commission;" but ere proceeding to treat of these we must dwell a little longer on the basis. The commission is truly a great one, and would need a solid foundation on which to rest it; and such it has, blessed be God, in the atoning death of His Son. Nothing less than this could sustain such a magnificent fabric; but the grace that planned the commission has also laid the foundation; so that a full remission of sins can be preached among all nations, inasmuch as God has been glorified, in the death of Christ, as to the entire question of sin. This is a grand point for the reader to seize. It lies at the very foundation of the Christian system. It is the keystone of the arch of divine revelation. God has been glorified as to sin. His judgment has been executed upon it. The claims of His throne have been vindicated as to it. The insult offered to His divine majesty has been flung back in the enemy's face. If the sweet story of remission of sins had never fallen upon a human ear or entered a human heart, the divine glory would none the less have been most perfectly maintained. The Lord Jesus Christ did, by His most precious death, wipe off the stain which the enemy sought to cast upon the eternal glory of God. A testimony has been given in the Cross, to all created intelligence, as to God's thoughts about sin. It can there be seen, with all possible clearness, that a single trace of sin can never enter
- 80. the precincts of the divine presence. God is of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity. Sin, wherever found, must be met by divine judgment. Where, we may ask, does all this come most fully and forcibly out? Assuredly in the Cross. Harken to that solemn and most mysterious cry, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" What means this wondrous inquiry? Who is the speaker? Is he one of Adam's fallen posterity? Is he a sinner? Surely not; for were he such, there would be no moral force whatever in the question. There never was a sinner on the face of this earth who, so far as he was personally concerned, did not richly deserve to be forsaken of a holy, sin-hating God. This must never be forgotten. Some people entertain most foolish notions as to this point. They have, in their own vain imagination, invented a god to suit themselves—one who will not punish sin—one who is so tender, so kind, so benevolent, that he will connive at evil and pass it over as though it were nothing. Now, nothing is more certain than that this god of the human imagination is a false one, just as false as any of the idols of the heathen. The God of the Bible, the God of Christianity, the God whom we see at the cross, is not like this. Men may reason as they will; but sin must be condemned—it must be met by the just and inflexible judgment of a sin-hating God. But we repeat the question, Who uttered those words at the opening of Psa. xxii.? If he was not a sinner, who was he? Wonderful to declare, He was the only spotless, perfectly holy, pure and sinless Man that ever trod this earth. He was more. He was the eternal Son of the Father, the object of God's ineffable delight, who had dwelt in His bosom from all eternity, "the brightness of His glory and the exact expression of His substance." And yet He was forsaken of God! yes, that holy and perfect One, who knew no sin, whose human nature was absolutely free from every taint, who never had a single thought, never uttered a single word, never did a single act that was not in the most perfect
- 81. harmony with the mind of God; whose whole life, from Bethlehem to Calvary, was a perfect sacrifice of sweetest odor presented to the heart of God. Again and again we see heaven opening upon Him, and the voice of the Father is heard giving expression to His infinite complacency in the Son of His bosom. And yet, He it is whose voice is heard in that bitter cry, "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?" Marvelous question! It stands alone in the annals of eternity. No such question had ever been asked before; no such question has ever been asked since; and no such question can ever be asked again. Whether we consider the One who asked the question, or the One of whom it was asked, or the answer, we must admit that it is perfectly unique. That God should forsake such an One is the most profound and marvelous mystery that could possibly engage the attention of men or angels. Human reason cannot fathom its depths. No created intelligence can comprehend its mighty compass. Yet there it stands, a stupendous fact before the eye of faith. Our blessed Lord Himself assures us that it was absolutely necessary. "Thus it is written, and thus it behooved Christ to suffer." But why was it necessary? Why should the only perfect, sinless, spotless Man have to suffer? Why should He be forsaken of God? The glory of God, the eternal counsels of redeeming love, man's guilty, ruined, helpless condition—all these things rendered it indispensable that Christ should suffer. There was no other way in which the divine glory could be maintained; no other way in which the claims of the throne of God could be answered; no other way in which heaven's majesty could be vindicated; no other way in which the eternal purposes of love could be made good; no other way in which sin could be fully atoned for, and finally taken away out of God's creation; no other way in which sins could be forgiven; no other way in which Satan and all the powers of darkness could be thoroughly vanquished; no other way in which God could be just, and yet the Justifier of any poor ungodly sinner; no other way in which death could be deprived of its sting, or the grave of its victory; no other
- 82. way in which any or all of these grand results could be reached save by the sufferings and death of our adorable Saviour, our Lord Jesus Christ. But, blessed forever be His holy name, He went through it all. He went down under the heavy billows and waves of God's righteous wrath against sin. He took the sinner's place, stood in his stead, sustained the judgment, paid the penalty, died the death, answered every question, met every demand, vanquished every foe; and having done all, He ascended into the heavens and took His seat on the throne of God, where He is now crowned with glory and honor as the divine and all-glorious Accomplisher of the entire work of man's redemption. Such, then, reader, is the basis of "the great commission" whereof we speak. Need we wonder at the terms, when we contemplate the basis? Can there be anything too good, anything too great, anything too glorious, for the God of all grace to bestow upon us poor sinners of the Gentiles, seeing He has been so fully glorified in the death of Christ? That most precious death furnishes a divinely righteous ground on which our God can indulge the deep and everlasting love of His heart in the perfect remission of our sins. It has removed out of the way every barrier to the full flood-tide of redeeming love which can now flow through a perfectly righteous channel, to the very vilest sinner that repents and believes in Jesus. A Saviour-God can now publish a full and immediate remission of sins to every creature under heaven. There is positively no hindrance. God has been glorified as to the question of sin; and the time is coming when every trace of sin shall be forever obliterated from His fair creation, and those words of John the Baptist shall have their full accomplishment, "Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world." Meanwhile, the heralds of salvation are commanded to go forth to the ends of the earth and publish, without let or limitation, perfect remission of sins to every soul that believes. It is the joy of God's heart to pardon sins; and it is due to the One who bore the judgment of sin on the cross that in His name forgiveness
- 83. of sins should be thus freely published, fully received, and abidingly enjoyed. But what of those who reject this glorious message—who shut their ears against it and turn away their hearts from it? This is the solemn question. Who can answer it? Who can attempt to set forth the eternal destiny of those who die in their sins, as all must who refuse God's only basis of remission? Men may reason and argue as they will; but all the reasoning and argument in the world cannot set aside the word of God, which assures us in manifold places, and in terms so plain as to leave no possible ground for questioning, that all who die in their sins—all who die out of Christ—must inevitably perish eternally, must bear the consequences of their sins, in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone. To quote the passages in proof of the solemn truth of eternal punishment would require a small volume. We cannot attempt it here; nor is it necessary, inasmuch as we have gone into the subject again and again in other places. But we would here put a question which arises naturally out of our present thesis. It is this: Was Christ judged, bruised and forsaken on the cross—did God visit His only begotten and well beloved Son with the full weight of His righteous wrath against sin—and shall impenitent sinners escape? We solemnly press this question on all whom it may concern. Men talk of its being inconsistent with the idea of divine goodness, tenderness and compassion that God should send any of His creatures to hell. We reply, Who is to be the judge? Is man competent to decide as to what is morally fitting for God to do? And further, we ask, What is to be the standard of judgment? Anything that human reason can grasp? Assuredly not. What then? The cross on which the Son of God died, the Just for the unjust—this, and this only, is the great standard by which to judge the question as to sin's desert. Who can harken to that bitter cry emanating from the broken heart of the Son of God, "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" and question the eternal punishment of all who die in their sins? Talk of tenderness,
- 84. goodness, and compassion! Where do these shine out most brightly and blessedly? Surely in "the great commission" which publishes full and free forgiveness of sins to every creature under heaven. But would it be just, or good, or compassionate, to suffer the rejecter of Christ to escape? If we would see the goodness, kindness, mercy and deep compassion of God, we must look at the cross. "He spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all." "It pleased Jehovah to bruise Him. He hath put Him to grief." "He hath made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." But if men reject all this, and go on in their sins, in their rebellion, in their infidel reasonings and impious speculations—what then? If men maintain that suffering for sin is not necessary, and that there is another and a better way of disposing of the matter—what then? Our Lord declared in the ears of His apostles that "it was necessary that Christ should suffer"—that there was no other way possible by which the great question could be settled. Whom are we to believe? Was the death of Christ gratuitous? Was His heart broken for nothing? Was the Cross a work of supererogation? Did Jehovah bruise His Son and put Him to grief for an end which might be gained some other way? How monstrous are the reasonings, or rather the ravings, of infidelity! Infidel doctors begin by throwing overboard the word of God—that peerless and perfect revelation; and then, when they have deprived us of our divine guide, with singular audacity, they present themselves before us, and undertake to point out for us a more excellent way; and when we inquire what that way is, we are met by a thousand and one fine-spun theories, no two of which agree in anything save in shutting out God and His Word. True, they talk plausibly about a God; but it is a God of their own imagination—one who will connive at sin—who will allow them to indulge in their lusts, and passions, and pleasures, and then take them to a heaven of which they really know nothing. They talk of mercy, and kindness, and goodness; but they reject the only channel
- 85. through which these can flow, namely, the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. They speak not of righteousness, holiness, truth, and judgment to come. They would fain have us to believe that God put Himself to needless cost in delivering up His Son. They would ignore that marvelous transaction which stands alone in the entire history of the ways of God—the atoning death of His Son. In one word, the grand object of the devil, in all the skeptical, rationalistic and infidel theories that have ever been propounded in this world, is to shut out completely the word of God, the Christ of God, and God Himself. We solemnly call upon all our readers, specially our young friends, to ponder this. It is our deep and thorough conviction that the harboring of a single infidel suggestion is the first step on that inclined plane which leads straight down to the dark and terrible abyss of atheism—down to the blackness of darkness forever. We shall have occasion to recur to the foregoing line of thought when we come to consider the authority on which "the great commission" comes to us. We have been drawn into it by the sad fact that in every direction, and on every subject, we are assailed by the contemptible reasonings of infidelity; and we feel imperatively called upon to warn all with whom we come in contact against infidel books, infidel lectures, infidel theories in every shape and form. May the inspired word of God be more and more precious to our hearts! May we walk in its light, feel its sacred power, bow to its divine authority, hide it in our hearts, feed upon its treasures, own its absolute supremacy, confess its all-sufficiency, and utterly reject all teaching which dares to touch the integrity of the holy Scriptures.
- 86. PART VI. We have seen that the basis of "the great commission" is the death and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. This must never be lost sight of. "It behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day." It is a risen Christ that sends forth His heralds to preach "repentance and remission of sins." The incarnation and the crucifixion are great cardinal truths of Christianity; but it is only in resurrection they are made available for us in any way. Incarnation—precious and priceless mystery though it be—could not form the groundwork of remission of sins, for "without shedding of blood is no remission" (Heb. ix. 22). We are justified by the blood, and reconciled by the death of Christ. But it is in resurrection that all this is made good unto us. Christ was delivered for our offenses, and raised again for our justification (Rom. iv. 25; v. 9, 10). "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures; and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1 Cor. xv. 3, 4). Hence, therefore, it is of the very last possible importance, for all who would carry out our Lord's commission, to know in their own souls, and to set forth in their preaching, the grand truth of resurrection. The most cursory glance at the preaching of the earliest heralds of the gospel will suffice to show the prominent place which they gave to this glorious fact. Harken to Peter on the day of Pentecost, or rather to the Holy Ghost, just come down from the risen, ascended and glorified Saviour. "Ye men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles, and wonders, and signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death:
- 87. because it was not possible that He should be holden of it.... This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses. Therefore being by the right hand of God exalted, and having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost, He hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear" (Acts ii.). So also in chapter iii.: "The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified His Son Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied Him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go. But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed the Prince of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.... Unto you first God, having raised up His Son Jesus, sent Him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.... And as they spake unto the people, the priests, and the captain of the temple, and the Sadducees, came upon them, being grieved that they taught the people, and preached through Jesus the resurrection from the dead." Their preaching was characterized by the prominent place which it assigned to the glorious, powerful and telling fact of resurrection. True, there was the full and clear statement of incarnation and crucifixion, with the great moral bearings of these facts. How could it be otherwise? The Son of God had to become a man to die, in order that by death He might glorify God as to the entire question of sin; destroy the power of Satan; rob death of its sting, and the grave of its victory; put away forever the sins of His people, and associate them with Himself in the power of eternal life in the new creation, where all things are of God, and where a single trace of sin or sorrow can never enter. Eternal and universal homage and adoration to His peerless name! But let all preachers remember the place which resurrection holds in apostolic preaching and teaching. "With great power gave the apostles witness." Of what? Incarnation or crucifixion merely? Nay; but "of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus." This was the stupendous fact that glorified God and His Son Jesus Christ. It was this that
- 88. attested, in the view of all created intelligences, the divine complacency in the work of redemption. It was this that demonstrated, in the most marvelous way, the complete and eternal overthrow of the kingdom of Satan and all the powers of darkness. It was this that declared the full and everlasting deliverance of all who believe in Jesus—their deliverance, not only from all the consequences of their sins, but from this present evil world, and from every link that bound them to that old creation which lies under the power of evil. No marvel, therefore, if the apostles, filled as they were with the Holy Ghost, persistently and powerfully presented the magnificent truth of resurrection. Hear them again before the council—a council composed of the great religious leaders and guides of the people. "The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew, and hanged on a tree." They were at issue with God on the all-important question as to His Son. They had slain Him, but God raised Him from the dead. "Him hath God exalted with His right hand, a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins." So also in Peter's address to the Gentiles, in the house of Cornelius, speaking of Jesus of Nazareth, he says, "whom they slew, and hanged on a tree, Him God raised up the third day, and showed Him openly: not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, to us who did eat and drink with Him after He rose from the dead." The Holy Ghost is careful to set forth the weighty and, to us, profoundly interesting fact that "God raised up His Son Jesus." This fact has a double bearing. It proves that God is at issue with the world, seeing He has raised, exalted and glorified the very One whom they slew and hanged on a tree. But, blessed throughout all ages be His holy name, it proves that He has found eternal rest and satisfaction as to us, and all that was or could be against us, seeing He has raised up the very One who took our place and stood charged with all our sin and guilt.
- 89. But all this will come more fully out as we proceed with our proofs. Let us now listen for a moment to Paul's address in the synagogue at Antioch. "Men, brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent. For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they knew Him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in condemning Him. And though they found no cause of death in Him, yet desired they Pilate that He should be slain. And when they had fulfilled all that was written of Him, they took Him down from the tree, and laid Him in a sepulchre. But God raised Him from the dead. And He was seen many days of them which came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are His witnesses unto the people. And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers, God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that He hath raised up Jesus; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee. And as concerning that He raised Him up from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore He saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: but He whom God raised again saw no corruption." Then follows the powerful appeal which, though not bearing upon our present line of argument, we cannot omit in this place. "Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this Man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: and by Him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses. Beware therefore, lest that come upon you which is spoken of in the prophets: Behold, ye despisers, and wonder, and perish; for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man declare it unto you" (Acts xiii. 26-41).
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