Greg Laurie of Harvest Christian Fellowship in California has shared why every Christian should be baptized and invited all believers to join him for a church-wide baptism this Saturday - at the very same location where he was baptized years ago.
"Every Christian should be baptized," Laurie said in a recent video posted on Facebook. "The Bible tells us to repent and be baptized, and by the way, being baptized is one of the greatest blessings of life. I vividly remember the day I was baptized years ago, and you know where it happened? A place called Pirate's Cove in Big Corona Beach."
This Saturday, Harvest Church will be holding a church-wide baptism at the very same place at 5pm, Laurie said.
"I would love to see you there," he said. "If you've not been baptized as a Christian, you need to come to this. Not only to be baptized, but if you already have been, just come and enjoy the fellowship and the worship. It's gonna be an epic event, kind of like we used to do in the old days with the Jesus Movement - this is where we did the baptisms."
He added, "As a matter of fact, this is the same spot where I personally was baptized, my wife, too."
In a 2007 sermon, Laurie, who is gearing up for the release of his forthcoming film "Steve McQueen: American Icon," further explained why every Christian needs to be baptized.
"A water baptism is a very important thing," he said. "It's a sign outwardly of something that has happened inwardly. An outward showing of an inward doing. Baptism doesn't wash away your sin, but it's a symbol of identifying with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ."
Baptism isn't required for salvation, Laurie explained, it's a symbol of saying "goodbye" to the old life.
"It's like a funeral service, but it's the only funeral service you'll ever attend that's actually joyful," he said. "This is a happy funeral, and if you have committed your life to Christ, you ought to be baptized, and if you haven't been baptized, quite frankly, there's no excuse for it, because you want to make this identification with Christ and His death and His resurrection."
Last month, Laurie hosted the 28th annual SoCal Harvest revival crusade, which was held at Angel Stadium in Anaheim and livestreamed across the country. The event, which featured performances from stars like Lecrae, Jordin Sparks and Jeremy Camp, saw over 10,000 people give their lives to Christ.
Earlier this year, the pastor hosted the annual Harvest America revival event in Glendale, Arizona, which saw over 3,000 people make "decisions for Christ."
"People will respond, and that's because God's word does not return void," Laurie told The Gospel Herald ahead of the event. "The basic questions of humanity never change, and the truths found in the gospel never change. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."
He added, "Everybody needs Jesus. If they're old, young, rich poor, if they're in America, Europe, Africa, China, Japan - everybody needs Jesus. No one is beyond the reach of God."
