Diamond industry giant
De Beers is finally caving in to pressure to produce synthetic diamonds for the
jewelry market. For years they had
publicly criticized other companies who offered the man-made stones and begged
consumers to stick with the real thing, even going so far as to develop a
machine that can detect the fakes. But,
as often happens, principle got sacrificed on the altar of consumer
demand. While they have been producing
synthetic diamonds for years for industrial purposes, starting in September
they will begin selling their own synthetic product to jewelry consumers. In case you’re interested, prices for the De
Beer’s fakes “...will start at $200 for a quarter carat, and increase to $800
for a full carat stone. The company's natural stones start at roughly 10 times
that amount, depending on their clarity and other attributes.”*
Pressure to provide a
fake product can come from many different sources. In De Beer’s case it is financial and they
are being upfront about their intentions.
They aren’t trying to deceptively pass off the fake as the real
thing. But that’s not always the case
with some “counterfeiters.” Sometimes
the stakes are higher and the consequences greater.
I’m thinking of the
efforts of some in the apostle Paul’s day who were trying to sell a fake gospel
to the churches of Galatia (Galatians 1:6-9).
In this case, the ones promoting the counterfeit gospel were not upfront
about their intentions and Paul denounced their efforts in the strongest of
terms, invoking a curse on those who would endanger the very souls of
others. Even angels were not to tamper
with the real thing!
The true gospel of
Jesus Christ is a gem of inestimable value that cannot be successfully
counterfeited. You may be able to
impress everyone but an expert with a synthetic diamond, but when it comes to
matters of the soul, insist on the real thing - the eternal and unfakeable
gospel of Jesus Christ.
God loves you!
Mike
*http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/29/news/companies/de-beers-man-made-diamonds/index.html
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