I am not aware of any scripture that addresses this subject directly. The fact is they didn’t have “organ transplants” back then so there was no need for teaching on organ donation. Having said that, there are two schools of thought today among believers, with one group believing organ donation is definitely wrong and the other group believing it is absolutely right.

Those who speak out against organ donation give two reasons for their view. First of all, they would say it would be a form of MUTILATING THE BODY and thus it is a dishonor to both the body and to the Lord. 1st Corinthians 6:19-20 are often quoted in support of this: “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (NASB). The second reason given is that in view of the resurrection of the believer’s body, the body should be COMPLETE when the Lord Jesus raises it. Regarding the first reason, the passage in 1st Corinthians is speaking of dishonoring the body through IMMORAL ACTS. Paul had exhorted the believers against immorality and he then cited the case of “one who joins himself to a prostitute (verse 15). I can’t agree with the thought that “donating your organs” is immoral. Regarding the thinking that “the body should be COMPLETE when the Lord Jesus raises it,” we all know that with most believers who die their bodies decompose and return to dust. God told Adam in Genesis 3:19, “By the sweat of your face you will eat bread, till you return to the ground, because from it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Some believers perish in a fire or die in an explosion where their body is blown into tiny pieces. Yet whatever the case may be, when the Lord raises us from the dead He will, by His power, “transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory” (Philippians 3:21). 1st Corinthians 15:42-43 has this to say about the resurrection of the body: “It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power.

Those who speak in favor of organ donation, point to passages that speak of how we should love our fellow human being and that saving one’s life by donating your organ would be an expression of that love. Consider the following verses: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13:9-10). “Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your power to do it” (Proverbs 3:27). “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith” (Galatians 6:9-10). As I thought on this question regarding organ donation, I thought of the time I donated blood at a local blood bank. Was it wrong for me to do this? I think not. I don’t believe I was dishonoring my body or the Lord in doing so, and I don’t think it would have mattered if I had died without having all my blood (leaving my body “incomplete”). I also thought of how many Christians have willingly donated a kidney (or other body part) to a loved one or a friend in order to save their lives. Were they dishonoring their bodies and the Lord in this act, or will their body being “incomplete” affect them when the resurrection occurs? Again, I believe the answer is a resounding “No.” Though this action must be left to the conscience of each individual believer, I believe if one feels led to donate an organ they are simply following the scriptures just cited, for by sacrificing part of ourselves we are indeed “loving our neighbor” and “doing good.”  (226.5)  (DO)