Rev. George Miller
July 5, 2026
Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
The World Cup is here and it’s like a
secular Pentecost- other nations and languages coming together around one
common thing. Instead of Christ, it is
soccer.
Thanks to social media, Americans are enjoying
an unexpected experience- seeing the vastness and beauty of the United States
through other people’s eyes.
Foreigners are in awe with our state
parks, how huge a country we are, how melt-in-your-mouth delicious barbeque
is and the yumminess of ranch dressing; trying soul food, biscuits and gravy,
and southern fried chicken.
On Instagram a man from Japan shared that he
was at a restaurant and immediately received chips and salsa. He said to the waiter “We have not earned
these.”
The waiter replied “They just come with
the table...”
The man said that in his land, hospitality
is a debt; every gift creates an obligation, weighed carefully, returned in proper
season.
He writes that in America the gift of
chips and salsa is a sign of trust, arriving before you can even prove that you’ll
pay for dinner.
When the chips are refilled, he refers to
it as “Generosity that arrives before the request cannot be repaid. The trust
of a nation is in that salsa.” nobunaga@japan_nobunaga
“We have not earned these/They just come
with the table.” This man from
Japan may have just summed up what Communion is.
Today we celebrate the 250th birthday
of America, the place we call home, a moment for us to remember the dreams that
our country means to many, especially those who immigrated here.
This is a time to give thanks for
democracy, something our congregational ancestors brought to the shores of
Massachusetts.
To feel inspired by our gorgeous landscapes,
to recall how we were conceived by the concept of Liberty, to honor those who
came across the Atlantic, how we have established an economy and created
standards, being a place that’s intended to welcome questioning and debate.
Of course some of those questions and
debates come down to how we interpret, what we value, and how we understand.
The ways in which immigration is currently
being discussed. What exactly were our
founding Father’s connection to scripture?
How do we improve relationships with those living within our borders?
President John Adams called today the “Great
American Festival,” a Day of Deliverance.
He was aware of the toil and treasure it
would take to maintain the Declaration of Independence, what it would mean to
support and defend the gifts of Liberty.
Toil and Treasure. These words sum up Ecclesiastes.
Today’s reading is written by someone who
is tired. They are sooo tired that they
are tired of being tired.
The author of Ecclesiastes is a teacher who
thought the solution to life is to learn as much as he can learn, but realizes the
more he learns the less he knows. This
makes him sad.
He tries to find joy and purpose in life
by buying things, building things, surrounding himself with rock stars and voluptuous
women, but nothing equates to joy.
He begins to realize how unfair and
foolish things are, how predictable and mundane life is.
He sees life as a daily set of tasks and
toil that never ever end. If the author
lived in St. Louis, he’d say “Oh my God! I have to rake in the Fall, shovel in
the Winter, deal with Spring storms, and sweat like a dog in the Summer!”
The author is despondent. He sees that those who follow the rules and
play fair are getting punished while those who do what they want seem to be living
it up.
He sees how greedy and lonesome his peers
have become. No matter how much success
they have had, it’s never enough. He
watches as death comes for everyone he knows.
Then, in chapter 4, verse 9, something clicks
for the teacher- yes, life is hard, yes, life is redundant, but when we are united,
it is so much better.
The author, who thinks he knows nothing at
all, actually knows a lot- that it is relationships, it is partnerships, it is
collaboration, which makes all the difference.
When one falls, the other can pick them
up. When one deals with the coldness of
life, the other can warm up their spirits.
When difficulty arises, two can face it together, and it is harder to be
broken when there are three.
This is not a scripture about rugged individualism
and celebrating those who can do it themselves- it is a scripture about the joy
that comes when 2 or more are gathered, the beauty of being relational, the strength
that comes from being united, the possibilities of being more than just
ourselves.
Life is full of toil; but when united it
can become tolerable and we can become undefeated.
United.
That’s what happened on the Day of Pentecost
when people from all over came together and the Holy Spirit fell upon them, uniting
them around the Good News of Jesus Christ.
United is what John Adams imagined and
hoped for when he helped give birth to our nation, longing to see the civic
virtue and character of democracy flourish and take root.
United, which is the motto of the UCC,
taken from the words of Jesus in John 17:21- “That they may all be one.”
This does not mean identical, or to always
agree, but to toil side by side, to strive together, to pick one up when the
other falls.
Unity is what Jesus brought to the
table. Unity is what Jesus embodied when
he drank wine at the wedding, shared fish on the hillside and broke bread in
the upper room.
Not just unity, but grace and
welcome. Jesus unified everyone at the
table by feeding them without anyone having to prove their worth or paying
ahead, but for simply being present.
Today’s reading ties into our nation’s 250th
anniversary; a reminder that who we are and what we can achieve is tied to our
sense of unity and shared purpose.
Today’s reading reminds us that how we
engage with others can make us stronger and better.
It is a way to bring calm to a world that wants
to say there are not enough chips for all, but Jesus says “Yes there are, and
they taste so much better when shared and united.” Amen
and amen.
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