Modern Day Jeremiah

   A local group of young church musicians formed a band, calling themselves Modern Day Jeremiah.
   Which raises the question how anyone could regard these hoary prophets of ancient Israel speaking to us in a modern voice.  Wasn't their job over long ago?  And in our fast paced, hard wired, soft-wared, world what could they possibly have to say of any relevance?  Even their metaphors are out of date, as in this morning's reading in Jeremiah, Chapter 18, verse 1: 
   "The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord:
       'Arise, go down to the potter's house,
         and there you will hear my word.'"
Jeremiah's obedience led him to do as instructed, and there he watched  a potter working on a revolving wheel, shaping and re-making the lump of clay in his hands.  We read, "And the word of the Lord came to me:
    'O house of Israel, can I not do with you as the potter has done ?"
Like the Master Potter, God asks rhetorically, am I not able to reshape a nation that has not conformed to the pattern I have intended for it?  Jeremiah applies the lesson to Israel:
   "Behold, like clay in the potter's hand, so are you in  my hands, O house of Israel." vs. 6.
If you are unfit and unconforming, intended for destruction, but turn from your evil ways, God says through the prophet, "I will repent of the evil I intended to do."  And if you are well built and well planted, then do evil in My sight and disregard My voice, God says "then I will repent of the good I intended to do."


In conveying these words, Jeremiah had a difficult job to do in a difficult time.  Was his message only for ancient Israel? Or do his words speak to our own time and our hearts also?


Can there be a modern day Jeremiah?