One danger in abandon (for the onlookers) is the seeming lack of logic in the situation.
In John 12 we see the account of Mary anointing Jesus with oil. This oil (spikenard) was valued at being worth about a years wages. The question in the head and mouths of the disciples and onlookers was: “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” Jesus’ answer: “Leave her alone, it was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”
It made perfect sense to Jesus.
In Luke 10 Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet listening to Him speak. Her sister, Martha, was getting frazzled with important preparations. She said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” Jesus’ answer:”Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
It made perfect sense to Jesus.
In the story that Jesus told of the lost son in Luke 15, the boy told his father (in essence) drop-dead and requested his inheritance. Days later the boy took off to do life on his own, later to discover that life had a rock-bottom. Through a series of unfortunate events this Hebrew was found, not only working for a Gentile, but feeding the Gentile’s pigs (deemed unclean by Jewish law). The boy, at the end of his rope, decided to go home and work as a servant. His well rehearsed line for his Father/Son confrontation was: “Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired men.” While walking home and he was still a long way off when his father saw him. His father ran to him (though considered undignified), took him in his arms and embraced him (though illogical to pride), and he said, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” Then there was a celebration. When the older son heard the celebrating and found out that it was the return of the rebel son, he was enraged and said to the father: “Look! All these years I’ve been slaving for you and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!” And the father said: “My son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.”Many know this as the story of “The Prodigal Son”. The word prodigal means: wasteful extravagance. The son may have been wastefully extravagant, but the father was equally prodigal in his abandoning love. The world may look and say: “Why would you forgive and restore?…Look what you lost!” The Lord says: “Look what was found!”
It made perfect sense to Jesus.
So, when you abandon it’s definitely not about being famous…it’s about a heart in love. My heart’s in love with Jesus. Not in a simple emotional way, but in a way that makes you look at life differently. In a way that makes you look at the world differently. And that kind of love messes you up (in a good way), and it makes you do wacky things…seemingly wasteful things. Things that the world may look at and say, “You’re over-reacting…why would you give up comfort…why would you give up ‘the American Dream’…why would do something against the grain of logic?” The answer: “LOVE.” Not the kind of love that you might read in dumb novels and see in movies. It’s not altogether an emotion (though it includes emotion), it’s a devotion of the will. It may not make sense to onlookers.
It makes perfect sense to Jesus.