Amos is prophesying against a wayward people - the Jews who are quite active in religious festivities, but far away from God ethically. Their daily lives gave no evidence to their supposed relationship with the LORD, who they "worshiped."
Amos poses a great question to them in Chapter 3 - "Do two walk together unless they have agreed to do so?" The answer is, "Of course not!" The Jewish people agreed to walk in the ways of the LORD way back at Mt. Sinai with Moses. Yet, over the years, they have forgotten their commitment. God is going to remind them with terrifying discipline. His people have become not His people.
There are many people that supposedly received Christ early on in life, perhaps in a High School youth group. Then their lives take on the look of someone who has no relationship at all to Christ. We never know who is really saved, but by my study of Scripture, I would say that they really never agreed to walk together with God. On the night that they had their religious experience, they perhaps wanted eternal security or the favor of their peers or whatever, but did they really agree to walk with God - to live a life of continually repentance - submitting progressively to the word of God - to be progressive transformed into the likeness of Christ - to be sanctified. They wanted Christ as Savior from the penalty of their sins - but they wanted to retained their lifestyle of sins. Were they saved? I think probably not, but only the LORD knows for sure.
When we are saved, God gives us the wont to be sanctified. There is no such things as fruitless Christians. I will be preaching on Romans 6 this weekend. Shall we go on sinning. By no means. We died to sin.
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