Being God's Image

Carmen Imes is a true gift to the body of Christ. This book was a joy to read and Imes does a great job of tracing the idea of humanity being the image of God through the entire Bible. The image of God (Imago Dei) is a concept that is so theologically rich and holds so many immediate ethical and pastoral implications for us in our day-to-day lives. Imes summarizes the image as being both kinship (an inherent, dignified, capacity to relate to God) and kingship (an inherent calling to rule and steward God's creation). Throughout the book she walks through the image in Genesis through to Jesus being the ultimate image, and along the way spells out the implications in everything from racial justice to stewardship of the environment to sexual ethics. This book is the holistic treatment of both deep theology and practical application of the image.

The thing I appreciate most about Imes' work as a whole is that she writes in a way that takes such rich theological topics and Biblical themes and makes them accessible to anyone. In many ways, reading her books feels like watching a Bible Project video – so rich in information but incredibly engaging. I believe that many great discipleship conversations will be had walking through the content of this book and highly recommend giving this book a read.

Thank you to NetGalley and IVP Academic for the advanced copy, this is a book I have been waiting for many months to read and it was well worth it.

Wow! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Well researched and great writing, just like Bearing God's Name. Carmen does a great job taking complex concepts and distilling them down in a way that the average lay person can follow along and understand what she is talking about. Being God's Image is such an important thread that goes all throughout the Bible and she did a phenomenal job of tracing that theme from Genesis all the way through Revelation. Taking a look at what Creation has to say about God's image, through the wisdom literature, and into the New Testament all the way through to the culmination of time. I'm not positive I agree with everything she talks about but loved her scholarship and writing. I will be buying a copy for myself when this is officially released to read through again more slowly. Thank you Carmen for another excellent volume!
Thanks to Net Galley for an advance reader copy in exchange for a review.

Carmen Joy Imes is a gift to the Church and for that matter, anyone who wants to understand the Bible. Her first book, Bearing God's Name, was one of the best books I have read on the Old Testament. Being God's Image is every bit as good as her first book and an essential read for all who want to understand what it means to be truly human. Imes is a Biblical Theologian and her writing is anchored in obvious research and deep knowledge and passion for the Scriptures. The book is accessible and written in a way that communicates a love for God and compassion for people. The book is written in 3 Parts. Part 1 discusses the Creation narratives of Genesis and the place of humans in God's good creation. Imes draws out the beauty of the narrative that challenges the reader to see and hear the text as it was written. Part 2 looks at the place of Wisdom as a call for humans to respond to God's created order. The discussion of sexuality and pornography in this section alone is worth the price of the book. Part 3 looks at Jesus and the Church as the model what it means to be human. This book was recommended by J Richard Middleton and I am so glad I have read it. I have put "Being God's Image" on my list of most important books to read.

In Being God’s Image Carmen Joy Imes is attempting to answer one of the main questions she received after she authored the previous title in this ‘series’: What is the difference between Bearing God’s Name (BGN) and Being God’s Image? Much like her previous book, Dr Imes does a great job of conveying this heady subject matter in manner which is easy to understand. One of my favorite things BGN did was provide a list of good books to read if you’d like to dig deeper into the topic was discussed in each chapter, and I was happy to see that this was included in this book, as well. Dr Imes takes the reader on a journey which explores the concepts such as the imago Dei, the divine council, environmental stewardship, and even the question of gender roles in the Bible. All of this builds together to eventually lead to a discussion of the new heavens and the new earth, and what that means for image bearers of the God of the universe. This book will undoubtedly challenge at least a few of the beliefs you’ve held onto without having questioned why you believe what you believe, but it will also build back up those beliefs with a more Christ-centered understanding.