⏱️ Estimated Reading Time: 5 min read
Guarding Our Marriages from Cultural Distortion | Romans 12:2
Show Summary
In this episode of Contending for the Word Q&A, we answer a timely and urgent question: How do we guard our marriages from cultural distortion? Culture is constantly catechizing our hearts through media, entertainment, social platforms, and self-centered philosophies. Scripture calls believers not to conform to the world, but to be transformed by the renewing of the mind (Romans 12:2). Guarding marriage begins with renewed minds, rejected lies, pursued holiness, and Christ as the foundation of the home.Audio Player
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Key Scriptures
- Romans 12:2
- Matthew 7:24–27
Episode Highlights
- Renew your mind with the Word: Scripture must shape our expectations, communication, forgiveness, priorities, and love.
- Reject cultural lies about love: Counterfeits like “follow your heart,” “love yourself first,” and “marriage is about personal happiness” distort God’s design.
- Pursue holiness together: Confession, quick repentance, prayer, worship, and purity are not optional—holiness protects marriage.
- Build your home on Christ: When storms come and cultural pressure rises, a Christ-centered home stands firm.
Full Article
We’ve been talking this month about God’s design for marriage, and today’s question is both urgent and practical: How do we guard our marriages from cultural distortion? The reality is that we are not discipled by Scripture alone. We are also being discipled daily by media, entertainment, social platforms, and the “common sense” assumptions of our age. And if we are not vigilant, subtle drift can reshape our thinking about love, identity, commitment, and even what marriage is for. Our anchor text is Romans 12:2: a clear call to resist conformity to the world and to pursue transformation through the renewing of the mind. Guarding our marriages begins with renewed minds—not cultural scripts.Here is today’s central truth: We guard our marriages from cultural distortions by renewing our minds in the Word of God, rejecting false visions of love, pursuing holiness, and building our homes on Christ.1) Renew Your Mind with the Word of God
God’s Word must shape our expectations, our communication, our forgiveness, our priorities, and our love. Without the Word, culture becomes our counselor and self becomes our authority. But marriage was designed by God, for God’s glory, and it must be governed by God’s truth. This is why the renewing of the mind matters. If our thinking is being formed by the world, our marriage will begin to drift—slowly, quietly, subtly. Scripture calls us to a better way: to let the Word reshape what we believe is normal, healthy, and faithful.2) Reject Cultural Lies About Love
The world offers counterfeit visions of love and marriage. You’ve heard them: “Follow your heart.” “Love yourself first.” “Compatibility is everything.” “Marriage is about personal happiness.” Even spiritual-sounding distortions creep in through emotional mysticism and self-centered philosophies. But biblical love is different. Biblical love is covenantal, selfless, holy, and true. It reflects God’s covenant faithfulness. It seeks the other’s good. It grows through sacrifice, forgiveness, and endurance. And it never asks culture for permission to redefine what God has created.3) Pursue Holiness Together
Guarding marriage means pursuing holiness. That includes confessing sin, repenting quickly, praying together, worshiping together, pursuing purity, and resisting temptation. Holiness is not an “extra.” Holiness is protection. The enemy would love to normalize small compromises—private sins, hidden resentments, unguarded inputs, prayerlessness, and spiritual laziness. But faithfulness is pursued intentionally, not accidentally.4) Build Your Home on Christ
Jesus teaches in Matthew 7 that the one who hears His words and does them is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. Storms will come. Cultural pressure will rise. False teaching will appeal. But a Christ-centered home stands firm. Guarding marriage, then, is not about retreating from the world in fear, but being rooted deeply in Christ and His Word. Build your home on the Rock. Let Christ set the tone for your love, your repentance, your priorities, and your perseverance.Takeaways & Reflection Questions
- What voices (media, social, entertainment) are most shaping your expectations about marriage right now?
- Where do you see cultural “scripts” influencing your communication, priorities, or view of love?
- What is one concrete way you can renew your mind in Scripture this week as a couple?
- What would it look like to pursue holiness together more intentionally (prayer, confession, worship, purity)?
- How can your home be more clearly built on Christ in daily rhythms and decisions?
Call to Action
Thank you for joining me on today’s episode of Contending for the Word Q&A. If this episode helped you, please subscribe on YouTube and follow the show wherever you listen to podcasts. For more from Contending for the Word Q&A please visit our page at Servants of Grace or at our YouTube.Stand firm on the Word of God. Cling to Christ. Build your home with truth and grace. God bless you and keep you.
Dave Jenkins is happily married to his wife, Sarah. He is a writer, editor, and speaker living in beautiful Southern Oregon. Dave is a lover of Christ, His people, the Church, and sound theology. He serves as the Executive Director of Servants of Grace Ministries, the Executive Editor of Theology for Life Magazine, the Host and Producer of Equipping You in Grace Podcast, and is a contributor to and producer of Contending for the Word. He is the author of The Word Explored: The Problem of Biblical Illiteracy and What To Do About It (House to House, 2021), The Word Matters: Defending Biblical Authority Against the Spirit of the Age (G3 Press, 2022), and Contentment: The Journey of a Lifetime (Theology for Life, 2024). You can find him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, or read his newsletter. Dave loves to spend time with his wife, going to movies, eating at a nice restaurant, or going out for a round of golf with a good friend. He is also a voracious reader, in particular of Reformed theology, and the Puritans. You will often find him when he’s not busy with ministry reading a pile of the latest books from a wide variety of Christian publishers. Dave received his M.A.R. and M.Div through Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary.
