Titus 1:10-16
For there are many who are insubordinate, empty talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision party. 11 They must be silenced, since they are upsetting whole families by teaching for shameful gain what they ought not to teach. 12 One of the Cretans, a prophet of their own, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” 13 This testimony is true. Therefore rebuke them sharply, that they may be sound in the faith, 14 not devoting themselves to Jewish myths and the commands of people who turn away from the truth. 15 To the pure, all things are pure, but to the defiled and unbelieving, nothing is pure; but both their minds and their consciences are defiled. 16 They profess to know God, but they deny him by their works. They are detestable, disobedient, unfit for any good work.
There is more than one way to try an avoid God. The most obvious is to ignore Him and His laws altogether by pursuing what you perceive to be your best life now... like a Cretan. The more subtle way is to try to keep His laws in order to keep Him out of your hair.
You can avoid God through reckless rebellion or religious rebellion. The religious variety is less riotous and has less pepper spray and turned over flaming vehicles, but it is nevertheless attempting the same end goal... distance from God.
There is a way to run away from God while still hanging around Him. This is the sin of the older brother in the Prodigal Son parable. He stayed close to home, doing his chores, and minding his manners. He lived his life proximally near to his father, but relationally distant. This is the equivalent of going to church and reading your Bible in order to avoid any deeper relationship with God. It is paying the God-tax in order to avoid any additional interaction.
"What do you want from me? Church attendance? Small group attendance? Bible reading? Ok, check. We good? Then we're done here."
There is a way to use religious means to create relational distance.
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