Religion is, in and of itself, sinful and a poke in Jesus’ eye.....
New International Version
“You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.”
And all religions have their versions of the law that they say you have to follow...
Not necessarily. The Scriptures do not condemn religion, only those who are hypocritical in living it out:
9 Women should adorn themselves modestly and sensibly in seemly apparel, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or costly attire 10 but by good deeds, as befits women who profess religion. (1 Timothy 2:9-10)
Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of our religion: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated in the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (1 Timothy 3:16)
If any one thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this man’s religion is vain. (James 1:26)
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world. (James 1:27)
If one adheres to a set of non-worldly revealed beliefs, prays to a deity, and lives a moral life according to the commands and precepts of that deity, one is practicing a religion whether one chooses to call it that or not. I think when people have a dismissive view of "religion" what they really mean is legalism -- following a set of beliefs woodenly and by rote, and without a true relationship with God.