House
A "house" is essentially a container -- for a person, a family, several families or even a large group with shared interests (think of the term "houses of worship.") In the Bible, a "house" is also a container, but for spiritual things rather than natural things. In various uses a "house" can represent part of the mind, the whole mind, a whole person or even a church. The other nuance to the word "house" is that it is generally used in regards to our affections and desires rather than our thoughts and principles. This makes sense; we tend to engage our thoughts and rationality when we are out in the world doing our work, but when we are inside our houses we are driven most by love for our families and the desire to be good to those we love. So "house" tends to represent the things we want and care about -- which are ultimately the things that define us.
The New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Teachings #116
116. Believing what the Word or the church teaches and not living by it may look like faith, and some may even conjecture that they are saved by it; but the truth is that no one is saved by faith alone. Faith alone is a conviction one deliberately induces in oneself; 1 therefore I need now to describe the nature of such self-induced convictions.
Footnotes:
1. The Latin term here translated "conviction one deliberately induces in oneself" and elsewhere as "self-induced conviction" is fides persuasiva, literally, "persuasive faith. " On this Latin phrase, see note 1 in New Jerusalem 49. [Editors]
