The Story of Desmond Doss
Desmond Doss (February 7, 1919 – March 23, 2006) was a United States Army corporal who served as a combat medic in World War II. His extraordinary story demonstrates the power of sacrificial love and unwavering faith. Refusing to carry a weapon because of his belief in the sanctity of life, Doss lived out the biblical principle of love in a remarkable way.
As a child, Doss was deeply influenced by the Bible, particularly the story of Cain and Abel. He was appalled that a brother could take another brother’s life. This conviction shaped his stance: “Jesus came to save life. While everyone else is taking life, I’m going to save lives.”
During the battle of Okinawa, Doss and his unit faced an unyielding enemy on a 400-foot ridge known as Hacksaw Ridge. On the first day, they thought victory was near, but the second day brought devastation. The enemy launched a brutal counterattack, forcing most of Doss’s unit to retreat. Many wounded soldiers were left behind.
“My comrades were up there,” Doss later said. “They were my buddies, my family. They trusted me. I didn’t feel like I should value my life above my buddies. So, I decided to stay with them and take care of as many as I could.”
Doss prayed continually, asking, “Lord, please help me get one more.” Time and again, he risked his life, dragging and lowering wounded soldiers down the ridge. By the end of that harrowing battle, Doss had saved 75 men. Despite being wounded multiple times, including from shrapnel after kicking away a grenade, his courage and love were unwavering. For his heroism, he was awarded the Medal of Honor.
Love One Another
Doss’s actions embody the teachings of Jesus, who called us to love sacrificially:
“For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another. For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Galatians 5:13–14)
Jesus not only taught love but demonstrated it through His life, death, and resurrection. In John 13:34–35, He said:
“A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Sacrificial Love
The love Jesus calls us to is radical, selfless, and sacrificial:
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13)
This is the love Desmond Doss demonstrated—a love that mirrors Christ’s willingness to give His life for others. The old commandment said, “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” The new commandment said, “Love your brother as I have loved you.” Jesus didn’t love us as He loved Himself; He loved us more, laying down His life to save us. This is the kind of love we are called to extend to one another.
Selfishness is the greatest barrier to this kind of love. It builds a fence around us, keeping us from serving others. But Christ calls us to tear down that fence and replace it with His love. Baptism symbolizes the death of our selfish nature and the beginning of a life centered on Christ and His love.
Living in the Kingdom of God
When we accept Christ, we are transferred from the kingdom of darkness—marked by selfishness and sin—into the Kingdom of God, where love reigns. In this new Kingdom, we don’t live for ourselves but for Christ:
“He died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Him who died for them and was raised again.” (2 Corinthians 5:15)
Salvation isn’t about freedom to do as we please. It’s about freedom to serve, love, and obey God.
The testimony of those who have passed from death to life, from one kingdom to the other, is this: “Before I met Jesus, I ran my own life. But since I met Him, He rules.”
Love in Action
Love isn’t just a feeling or a word—it’s an action. As 1 John 3:18 says:
“Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.”
Love looks like something. It looks like Jesus. It looks like the cross. It looks like selfless acts of service, like laying down our lives for others. Philippians 2:3–5 reminds us to live with humility, valuing others above ourselves and following the example of Christ.
The Fulfillment of the Law
Love fulfills all the commandments. When we love one another, we naturally avoid harming, stealing from, or condemning others:
“Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8)
Colossians 3:14 calls love the bond of perfect harmony, while 1 Peter 4:8 declares, “Love covers a multitude of sins.” All the “one another” commands—bear with one another, forgive one another, encourage one another—are encompassed in this call to love.
Conclusion
Desmond Doss’s story is a powerful reminder of what it means to love sacrificially. He lived out the command to love one another as Christ loved us, putting the needs of others above his own life. His actions challenge us to examine our own lives and ask: Are we walking in this kind of love?
Jesus’s love for us was extravagant, sacrificial, and heroic. He calls us to love in the same way—to lay down our lives, take up our crosses, and follow Him. This kind of love fulfills the law, transforms lives, and reflects the heart of God. Let us love one another, not in word alone, but in truth and action, until love becomes the defining mark of our lives.
Love One Another
By Micah Level