Ryan King is pastor of Grace Baptist Church, Wood Green, London and works with Grace Baptist Partnership on Europe-related leadership development and church planting projects.
He is the author of Every Man’s Conscience: Early English Baptists and the Fight for Religious Liberty (H&E Academic) and is married to Uliana, who he met while speaking at a conference in Ukraine, and together they have a daughter, Sara.
1. How did you become a Christian?
I was born to Christian parents and from the beginning was taught the Scriptures, taken to church, and engaged with the gospel. As a child, I came to a personal recognition that I needed to be saved from my sins and their just consequences, and trusted in Christ alone to save me. Since then, the gospel has continually addressed my self-righteousness, self-loathing and selfishness, and directed me again and again to Christ and His sufficient grace.
2. What lessons have you learnt since that you would want to pass on to a younger Christian version of yourself?
God is bigger than you could ever imagine, He is closer than you could ever dream, and His grace is deeper than can be fathomed. You will be disappointed by yourself and disheartened by others: keep your eyes on Jesus.
3. How would you describe your prayer life?
Grown, growing, and needing growth. I think it is deeply personal. I talk with God throughout the day, in different ways and places. Every day is punctuated with expressions of gratitude. In the same day, I may vent burdens, frustrations, griefs and, at times, the seemingly insurmountable needs of people around me. But by far my most often prayed prayer, is a quiet – at times weary – whisper: “I need you, Lord.”
4. Which two or three Christian books apart from the Bible have most influenced your faith?
A steady diet of generally helpful content has been more influential than any two or three books, so I could answer the same question in different ways at different times. At the moment though, I am grateful for two books I read at some point as a young Christian: a young adult biography of William Carey by Sam Wellman in a series called “Heroes of the Faith’, and The Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan. An unconventional answer, but I would also add A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens which I particularly love for its pervasive theme of resurrection, culminating with an unlikely character’s transformative late-night meditations on John 11:25-26, that propel him to willing sacrifice in light of eternity.
5. Who or what have been your biggest Christian influences?
Unquestionably my parents, Barry and Frances King. Every step of the way, they have nurtured, counselled, guided and encouraged me to be completely committed to the Lord and His calling on my life. Also, the dear saints of Tumbling Shoals Baptist Church, where I grew up: they modelled serious and substantial commitment and service to the local church, helped me memorise Scripture, were incredibly kind and loving to me, did not infantilise me, encouraged me in my earliest sermons, and helped my personal development in countless other ways. Many of them are now with the Lord. Historically, the early English Baptists of the 17th century, about whom I have recently written in Every Man’s Conscience: Early English Baptists and the Fight for Religious Liberty. Add to these, exemplars of the African-American preaching tradition, who have a unique ability to move me from theology to doxology and can teach all of us who preach.
6. What are the main challenges you believe Christians face today?
Maintaining a resilient and articulate faith in a society of irreducible complexity, and the resolve to faithfully worship and witness regardless of personal distraction, cultural marginalisation, and spiritual opposition.
7. What encourages and what discourages you?
Seeing people grow in gifts and service as they prayerfully participate in and practically commit to the local church encourages me greatly. Watching others reject or more casually opt out of the blessing and benefits of local church life, especially due to unacknowledged cultural influences of individualism, materialism and consumerism, discourages me greatly.
8. What makes you laugh?
My life. It is filled with some pretty quirky characters and bizarre experiences (some are more of a laugh-otherwise-you’d-cry variety) and some stories just have to be shared. I love listening to and telling real-life stories, especially if there is a comic twist. Sit me down with my immediate or extended family, or a group of men from the church, and there is bound to be some hearty laughter.
9. What would you want to say to the wider evangelical world?
Daniel 11:32b: “The people who know their God shall stand firm and take action.”
10. Which Biblical person (other than Jesus) do you most look forward to meeting in glory and why?
Joseph, the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. We know little about him, but he was a just man, attentive and obedient to the leading of the Lord, and acting with a calm urgency, immediacy, clarity, and certainty in the face of confusion and crisis.
