2 Timothy 3:5 holding the form of religion but denying the power of it. Avoid such people.

Religion is a ritualistic and organized way of worshiping God, and it is one of the devil's strongholds in the lives of even believers. It is an outward form of godliness. Religion is bad because it has a way of removing the person of the Holy Spirit from the picture entirely. It had reduced the organic life of our worship to nothing more than a set of blind rules.

Giving prayer a formula, such as beginning with praises, worship, repentance, petition, and thanks for answers to prayer; rules such as receiving such an answer from God requires praying such a prayer or reading such passages in the bible; paying tithes solely for business success; giving only to be given in return; praying and studying the word solely to maintain your pride as a spiritual giant, competitive fasting and so on.

The true form of godliness is achieved by faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross and is proudly sponsored by the spirit of Christ. Any rules, activities, or beliefs, regardless of how spiritual they look or sound, that replace or deny the power of the Holy Spirit must be dealt with.