Luke 14:33
Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.
Matthew 6:24
No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and Money.
First let me be clear I do not believe we live in a Christian nation. Yes Christianity has helped to shape parts of this nation but if you go to the gospels it is pretty clear that those who follow Christ are to be part of the Kingdom of Heaven on earth, which is the church of believers. This kingdom is to be entered into of ones own free will, no one can be forced into the Kingdom of Heaven and God has of his own intensions created this church outside of any political government to be about God’s work. This work is specifically laid out in the following.
The Great Commission
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
I personally think people read nations in this and other verses and forget that the relationship is a personal one. There is also this mythos being perpetuated that the United States is this great Christian nation ordained by God. However if one goes to the four books of the Gospels one will find that this is completely unbiblical. Jesus did not come as a general or political leader but preaching the kingdom of heaven, preparing the way to eternal salvation through the sacrifice of his own flesh and blood on the cross. To claim his name for any nation is to denigrate the purpose of his sacrifice and usurp the Kingdom of Heaven for earthly gains.
Second I believe that there are those who would become false martyrs, like the clerk in Kentucky. This is about her, not God, no matter what she or her supporters believe. I say this confidently as Jesus never said go get government jobs and enforce the Mosaic laws on those who do not believe in them. What he did say was to give up ourselves and follow him, make disciples and follow what he taught.
Ultimately though we are cowards, we live our lives on our terms and find ways to wrap ourselves in God without actually giving ourselves over completely.