Relationship Goals Part 3 - Resist Temptation | Craig Groeschel

Devil-Kicking Relationships

Scripture References

Primary text

• Ephesians 6:11-12

Other references

• Ephesians 5:3
• Proverbs 4:14-15
• 1 Corinthians 10

Overview

A healthy marriage or friendship is never built by accident. Because whatever God blesses, Satan attacks, every relationship must be ready to stand “devil-kicking.” Pastor Craig showed how the enemy’s two favorite strategies—distraction and seduction—can quietly erode intimacy, and he laid out practical, Spirit-empowered ways to shut every door the devil tries to crack open.

Main Points

1. Relationships are fought for on a spiritual battlefield

• We are not battling “flesh and blood”; our spouse is not the enemy.
• Paul commands us to put on God’s full armor so we can “stand firm against all the strategies of the devil” (Ephesians 6).

• Illustration: Craig described getting a phone alert that a violent criminal is headed to your house. You’d lock every door, set alarms, buy a dog, maybe grab a weapon. Our vigilance against spiritual attack should be even higher.

2. How Satan attacks: Distraction

• Often shows up as “little foxes”—seemingly harmless annoyances, comparisons, or nitpicking that spoil the vineyard before fruit can grow (Song of Songs example).
• Typical foxes: endless kid schedules, career “hobbies,” phone screens, nitpicking how the other drives, eats, even breathes.
• The devil studies where each couple is most vulnerable and pushes there until trust erodes.

3. How Satan attacks: Seduction

• Sexual temptation is rampant; 60 % of divorces now cite pornography as a factor.
• Scripture’s standard: “not even a hint of sexual immorality” (Ephesians 5:3).
• Don’t see how close you can get to the line; stay far from it.

• Illustration: A poisonous-snake line—stand nowhere near it.

• If a phone, a gym environment, a coworker lunch, or a hashtag weakens you, eliminate or distance yourself today instead of battling it tomorrow.

“Why would I fight a temptation in the future if I can eliminate it today?”

4. Practical safeguards

• Avoid the path, don’t travel on it, turn from it, go another way (Proverbs 4).
• Couples: pray together daily (30-second prayer minimum); escalate prayer whenever pressure rises.
• Learn Scripture so you can wield the “sword of the Spirit” when attacked: declare, “No weapon formed against my marriage will prosper.”
• Single believers: who you are today shapes tomorrow. You can’t “build a life of righteousness in the future on a foundation of sin today.”

5. Stand together, not against each other

“We are Christ-centered, mission-driven, devil-kicking, covenant-keeping.”

• Face the same side of the table and fight the darkness, not each other.
• Wives: convert criticism into prayer and affirmation—draw out any spark of good you see.
• Husbands: reject passivity; lead spiritually, set boundaries, get counsel, serve, and fight for your family.

• Story: Craig’s favorite worship-time couple—both on second marriages, blended family, financial and health storms—still stands arm-in-arm each weekend declaring God’s goodness. They get attacked like everyone else, but they refuse to turn on each other.

Key Truths

• A distracted or seduced heart is Satan’s shortest path to a divided relationship.
• “Little foxes” become vineyard-killers when left unchecked.
• Holiness begins with “not even a hint”; boundaries are wisdom, not legalism.
• God always provides a way of escape (1 Corinthians 10); we cooperate by taking it.
• Two believers, shoulder-to-shoulder under Christ’s Lordship, are more than conquerors.

Response

• Identify—together or alone—the place where you are presently most vulnerable to attack.
• Distance yourself from that temptation or trigger immediately.
• Pray aloud with your spouse (or a trusted friend) every day this week.
• Memorize one warfare verse (Ephesians 6, 1 John 4:4, etc.) and speak it when pressured.
• Replace criticism with specific words of affirmation.
• Husbands: schedule and lead a plan for spiritual growth (church, group, counseling).

Closing

Spiritual warfare is not future theory; it’s today’s reality, and relationships that thrive choose to fight God’s way. With Christ at the center, a shared mission, vigilant resistance, and covenant commitment, even wounded marriages can see restoration because “greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world.”

“Not my house, not my family, not my kids—devil, not today.”

Prayer

“Heavenly Father, forgive all my sins, make me brand new.
Fill me with Your Spirit so I could follow You.
My life is not mine—I give it all to You.
Thank You for a new life; now You have mine.
In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”