Since these virtues are so fundamental, we want to be certain that we have the genuine article.

Sometimes we may step out on what we think is faith, but it's actually something else. Let's look at one example from scripture of a statement that sounds like real faith, but actually it's a fake.

At this point, Peter has been with Jesus for a while. He's started practicing what he learned from Jesus. Two chapter prior, Peter asked Jesus to let him walk on water with him and he did! Just a few verses before this, Jesus praises Peter for hearing from God.

But in this case, Peter's statement, which sounds like a faith confession, is actually motivated by the wrong spirit!

Being sincere, or being a good person, or even having a track record of real faith in the past does NOT mean you won't ever miss it!

Look closely and compare with the standard (THE BIBLE); does it have the maker's signature?