CC York Pastors Baptize More Than 550 at Bridlington Beach, United Kingdom

On October 10, more than 550 people were baptized in the North Sea at Bridlington Beach in the United Kingdom, according to a November 12 report in Calvary Chapel Magazine written by Delaney Kent.

Merlin Kraft, of Calvary Chapel Plymouth in England, recounted the event with CC York Pastor Dave Sylvester. Kraft encouraged people to come to Jesus in their brokenness, repent of their sins and trust that He will receive them. He said that Jesus is not looking for perfect people, calling that idea a lie that the enemy has spread around the world.

Kraft has worked with his own church and with other Calvary Chapels and churches across the UK to provide several opportunities for believers to be baptized. The article notes that John Wesley preached the Gospel in the town of Bridlington in the late 1700s, a few hundred yards from the site of the baptism.

Sylvester said he reached out to Kraft after a mass baptism at Bigbury Beach in Devon, England. CC York already had a building in Bridlington close to South Beach and wanted to begin outreaches and Bible studies in the area. Sylvester said people in the area have since asked to join the Bible studies. The building is called Calvary Chapel Beach House, and the churches’ cooperation on the outreach reflects a shared effort in the work of the Lord (John 17:21).

Sylvester said the CC York believers who helped with the baptism did not know what to expect. They set up foldout tables and a small public address system on the sand and waited. He said people arrived from across the country, and some had booked hotels the night before. He also said 60 to 80 people from the church took part, and he described the number baptized as more than the church had anticipated.

Sylvester summarized the event by saying, “It was definitely a work of the Spirit—all we did is show up.” He said baptism is a public declaration that a person is following Jesus.

Another baptism is scheduled for New Year’s Eve, December 31, 2026, at St. Ives in Cornwall. The article directs readers to Kraft’s online ministry, BibleLadUK, for more details.

Source: Read the original report