I took it to a jeweler the next week. My hopes were confirmed, the gold was tested and confirmed to be real, the stone identified as red coral. Immediately the ring went up for auction, the bidding was fast and furious, the ring sold at a price beyond what I had imagined. It was quickly shipped to the buyer.
I have a 14 day return guarantee on items purchased from my auctions and store. On day 13 I heard from the buyer. From a different country than I had shipped the ring. Stating the red coral was fake. I was sure it was a scam! After all, I knew my jeweler was reputable, and this buyer was a stranger - claiming to be an expert!
Still, because of my policy, I asked the buyer to return the ring, which they did. It took a long time to receive the package, but when it arrived and the ring was inside, I refunded the buyer's bid. We had continued to have conversations by email, and the buyer convinced me to seek another appraisal to confirm their findings.
It sat on my desk for awhile. It was still beautiful. I wanted it to be real, and taking it to another jeweler meant that my jeweler (and I) might be wrong. Or the buyer might be right.
Finally, unable to stand not knowing for sure, I took it to another jeweler. One that knew more about red coral. They knew what to look for, and sadly, the characteristic markings of red coral were not there when checked under high power magnification. The stone was fake, as the buyer had pointed out, my jeweler and I were wrong.
I was a little shaken! What if the buyer had never pointed out the problem? Someone later may have trusted that they had a treasure, only to realize that what they had invested in was not real! As much as it wounded my pride to believe I could be wrong, it was by admitting the buyer may be right that led me to the truth!
I've shared this story in part for treasure hunters out there - please be willing to get a second opinion before you believe you know the truth about an item you've picked up at an estate sale.
The rest of the reason goes like this:
I know a man that is much like the first jeweler. Many trust something very important to his care - their very soul, if you will, believing what he says about God's requirements for our life on earth and eternity to come. Part of what he says is true - like the gold mounting of the ring. And it is golden - God is love (1 John 4:8), God did not sent His Son Jesus to condemn the world, but to save it (John 3:17), truth found in God's Word the Bible.
Part of what he says is not truth. Perhaps it is unintentional - I doubt the jeweler was trying to harm me by giving a false appraisal of the red coral, but it was still fake. To say that God and His requirements change with societal norms, modern times, advances in technology is not truth, (Malachi 3:6, Hebrews 13:8, Psalm 102:27, Lamentations 3:21-23). We may change, the truths that God set down in His Word, do not change. We may want to rejoice in the "gold" of His Word, but changing other parts of His Word to fit our lifestyle, makes our whole belief system fake.
Our Pastor is like the buyer of the ring. He has inspected what is being taught by this man, and declared it fake. And the people who believe the man are outraged - like I felt when the buyer called me out. How could a stranger know that what they are hearing and believing is not true. What if this stranger is right? It means having to take a closer look at what you want to believe is real. It means your pride may be hurt when you realize what you thought was beautiful and real - was just a pretty fake red stone...
Praise God for those that spend much time in His Word and can tell a fake from a treasure. They are a lot like the second jeweler, magnifying what is taught and looking for the characteristics that mark teachings as truth. In the end, they will keep many from trusting in a fake with the treasure of their soul!
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