Ezekiel 36:23 And I will sanctify my great name, which was profaned among the heathen, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the heathen shall know that I am the Lord, saith the Lord God, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. 24 For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25 Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. 26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God. 29 I will also save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you.
Evil times are upon us. In the decades of my lifetime I’ve seen the miracles of transplants. Years ago if you had a kidney disease you died. Doctors didn’t know what to do or if a transplant was tried the body rejected it. Now it can be done. I remember in 1966 or 67 the first artificial heart surgery. The old heart had to come out and a new one was a machine beside his bed. It gave the man a few more days. Both he and his family were appreciative of more time. He didn’t live long but he was happy for the extra days. That has come a long way. Now kidneys, hearts, eyes, and liver can be transplanted. I know several who’ve had such surgeries.
The Lord showed me how he’s implanted knowledge. People are alive today because someone else died. A person decided to be an organ donor when he dies so that others can live. A lot of people are alive today because a person died and then donated the good organs to be transplanted. I’m an organ donor and if anything of use can be used when I die to help someone else I’m glad to help.
What stands between a donor and the recipient is a surgeon. There has to be one. Every verse here lays out the procedure. Not just any doctor can do a transplant. I love my nurse practitioner but if I needed a transplant I would take her recommendation but I wouldn’t let her do the surgery. In the same thought, I can’t save you. I can’t revive you. But I can recommend a surgeon. His name is Jesus!
Jesus was willing to die for us. In the situation here he’s speaking to people who are backslid. They went back into sin and wore themselves out. They couldn’t reform or turn over a new leaf. They needed a transplant or they wouldn’t last long. Every organ in their spiritual body was sick with sin. In the book of Revelation Jesus told the church at Sardis that they were dead and didn’t even know it. He told them to repent and come back to him. They couldn’t fix it. They had to come back to God to be fixed.
Sin will do nothing but slowly destroy and squeeze the life out of you. Sometimes we have diseases that we don’t even know about until the symptoms show. More frightening than that we need to open our eyes to our spiritual life. We ought to be strong enough to say I want to be thoroughly right with God. Job said the Lord gives and he takes away. Did he curse God? No. He said blessed be the name of the Lord. We have a God who can heal. He can work, but the greatest miracle is the Surgeon who can take our bad sinful heart. He’s the best donor–Jesus. He didn’t come to live but to die. The Bible says Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. We are his friends if we keep his commandments.
We have the greatest donor of all. He laid aside his deity so he could be “die-able” and give his “organs” for our lost, dying soul. It’s how we find salvation. I’m glad we have a God who’s a transplant surgeon. Jesus was the donor. God transplanted. The Holy Spirit helps in the rejection department. We were dead, but in the hands of God Almighty we have new life. We can’t ask for better. He saves from the inside out. No matter how hard a heart we have God has the instruments to take care of it. God asks why will you die? He’s ready to do it all for us. Peace comes from the surgeon.
Sometimes we get out of the will of God. Let’s be frank about it–we backslide. David couldn’t sleep. He was miserable until he admitted and said “I have sinned against God.” Don’t play with sin. Take it seriously. You’d take it seriously if a doctor told you that you need surgery. You don’t say you can fix it yourself. The Lord said For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. A surgeon won’t come to your house; you go to him. God went further. Jesus died. Everything we need is at the foot of the cross. Too many want to watch television preachers or listen to the radio preachers with their chips in hand instead of coming to church. We need to get off our recliners and get on our knees. There’s not a room in your house that a surgeon could safely operate on you. You’ll need to go to the hospital.
We need to go to God. Let him take care of things. He’s the one who cleanses from sin. You can’t cleanse yourself. You have to get under the water of God. Surgery can hurt and it might hurt to give up your sins. But you do it. Many are her today because of a good doctor. Dr. God puts in a new heart and gets rid of the evil spirit of sin. We get a new spirit of life. Why? Because Jesus donated it all.
What do you need? Does some part of your life need to be fixed? Jesus has just what you need. Put your hand in the one who has never lost a patient. You won’t get a bill. It’s been paid for in full. Do you need a transplant today?
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 