The organ of Leens was donated by Anna Habine Lewe, dowager of Starkenborgh, to replace an earlier instrument dating from 1622. The new organ was built entirely from scratch by Albertus Antoni Hinsz and ranks among his earliest surviving works. For this reason alone, the instrument occupies a special place within Hinsz’s oeuvre.

In contrast to many other historic organs, the Leens organ has undergone relatively few radical alterations. Between 1843 and 1844, Geert Pieter Dik of Groningen carried out mainly repair work. After the bellows were removed from the unstable tower in 1860 and both church and tower were restored, Van Oeckelen was commissioned in 1867 to restore the organ. During this intervention, the Quintadena 16′ was replaced by a Bourdon 16′.

In 1922 Jan Doornbos undertook a rebuilding, replacing among other things the façade principals, installing a new bellows with electric wind supply, and modifying several stops. Following the church restoration in the 1950s, the organ fell into poor condition, largely due to dust and moisture. Because funds were lacking, Mense Ruiter was asked in 1951 to make the instrument playable again.

A major restoration followed in 1968, carried out by Van Vulpen, during which the disposition of 1734 was restored. This work was guided by the advice of Lambert Erné and Cor Edskes. On April 26, 1968 the organ was taken back into use, with Lambert Erné at the keyboards. Later work included stabilization of the wind supply, routine maintenance, and a retuning to Neidhardt temperament.

Between 2018 and 2021 extensive maintenance was carried out by the firm Reil. The wind system was reconstructed, the organ case restored, and the voicing revised where necessary. On April 30, 2021 the organ was once again taken into use, played on that occasion by restoration advisor Henk de Vries, followed by a ceremonial reintroduction during a church service on May 2, 2021.