In the first reading Barnabas is faithful to the Lord and teaches others to be as well.  These were the first people called Christians – the beginning of our faith. On his feast day today we celebrate him as a man of faith, and a man who encouraged others to express their faith.

In the psalm we see the faithfulness of the Lord as well.  He has “made his salvation known” and ‘revealed his justice.”  “He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness.”  The Lord is faithful to us; we should be faithful to him as well.  He shows his faithfulness through kindness and what better way to repay him than in our faithfulness to him.

In many ways Jesus changed everything. Or maybe evolved, or refined, or moved forward. Changed, yes, but not like starting from scratch. More like building forward on a solid base. The old is not negated or discarded, but continued in a new form.  Jesus said he did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it. The word of the Lord is always valid. Jesus did not and will not change that, but he is the word, and in living form moves forward on its solid base. The new form is wonderful, but it doesn’t lessen the old base. It’s like the Girl Scout song: Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold.

The past is necessary to get to the future. We don’t want to forget where we came from or how we got here. We need what we have learned on our journey to move forward.

Jesus hasn’t negated or abolished the commandments. He says the commandments are still in effect, will always be in effect. Those who break the least of the commandments or encourage others to do so will wish they hadn’t. Following the commandments is always the best way to live, and those who follow the commandments will prosper in this world and the next.