117. Faith from false belief is when the Word is believed and loved, and so is the teaching of the church, not for the sake of truth, and living in accordance with it, but when the ends in view are gain, honours and a reputation for learning. For this reason those who have that faith look not to the Lord and to heaven, but to themselves and the world. Those in the world with lofty ambitions and great desires are more the victims of the false belief that truth is what the church teaches, than those without lofty ambitions and great desires. This is because for them the teaching of the church is only a means to their own ends; and the more the ends are desired, the more the means are loved and believed in. But the fact of the matter is this: the more they are fired by self-love and love of the world, and are impelled by that fire to speak, preach and act, the more they are subject to that false belief; and then they know no better than that this is so. When, however, they are not fired by those loves, then they believe less, and many do not believe at all. From this it is plain that faith from false belief is a faith of the lips and not of the heart; and so it is no faith at all.