This book is less on ecclesiology and more an apologetic for the church, addressed to one who may be curious about or burnt by an evangelical church. One thus should not approach this book expecting a discussion on the theology of the church, its sacraments, its policy and tradition, and so on. This book is definitely accessible to the lay Christian in the pews or even the exvangelical who has left the pews though, and I think Dr Imes has done a great job in writing this accessible piece while including many nuggets of theology that more interested readers can pursue further beyond this book.

Dr Carmen Joy Imes begins by defining "the church [as] an incarnational community informed by the Scriptures. By incarnational I mean that the church bears embodied witness to Christ in a particular place." (p 6) The "most important job" for the people of God, Dr Imes posits, is to "wait [together] for him to act" (p 13), and this book "trek[s] through Scripture [...] to see how it signals our need for community." (p 12)

Chapter 1 begins with a survey from Genesis to Numbers, outlining Abraham leaving his home and God's promises to him (with a discussion on Hagar and God seeing her as well, pp 22-24), the birth of Israel in Exodus – one nation under YHWH's leadership, gathered around His presence (p 28) (while being multiethnic as well, including Ruth, Rahab, Zipporah, the mixed multitude in Ex 12:38, etc. (pp 29-30)) who bore collective responsibility to safeguard the divine presence (thus the importance of ritual purity in Leviticus and Numbers) (pp 30-34). Chapter 2 then goes into Israel's entrance into the promised land, from Deuteronomy preparing them to do so to the conquest in Joshua to the deterioration of society in Judges. Dr Imes uses this as a pivot to discuss the #churchtoo movement, pointing to the Bible being clear about oppression of the vulnerable (from Ex 22:21-23 to Luke 17:2 and James 3:1) and arguing that when oppression and abuse happen, rather than responding "with a nonchalant "Mistakes happen."" or being more committed to "protecting [leaders] from the consequences of sinful actions than [committing] to cultivating a culture of safety and justice", we must "refuse to tolerate" such exploitation and "take seriously the charge to look out for others." (pp 48-50) Writing as someone who has watched the #churchtoo movement from the outside (being a Christian from outside North America), I think she is right.

Chapter 3 traces the story of Samuel, the story of how God chose to include him into the priesthood contrasted against Eli's sons (pp 55-58), to David's story and Solomon's building of God's temple, culminating in YHWH filling the temple (p 71). Interestingly, Dr Imes does not spend much time on David and Bathsheba, but instead focuses on the account in 2 Sam 21 where blood guilt is hung over from Saul's slaying of the Gibeonites, and thus David had to avenge their wrong. However, he did it "without consulting Yahwah" (p 67) thus causing Rizpah to publicly mourn before the corpses of her children David executed and exposed – and only after their bodies were laid to rest did God answer the prayer for the famine to cease (p 68). From this, Dr Imes submits that the faith community mustn't be oblivious to injustice, two wrongs don't make a right, and that the community bears shared responsibility even when it was its ancestors that broke their commitments – and God takes commitments seriously (pp 68-70). Chapter 4 covers the divided kingdom, the downward spiral of both societies due to false worship, and ends on a positive note – the reforms of Josiah leading to "a bright spot in a long string of disasters" as "He understands that to experience God's blessing, Judah needs to become a community committed to proper worship with shared attention to the Word of God and a shared commitment to faithful obedience." (p 89)

Chapter 5 is on the exile and Jeremiah's instruction to Israel to live at peace with their Babylonian neighbours, working towards flourishing of communities (pp 94-97), Daniel's vision of the Son of Man receiving glory and God's holy people receiving the kingdom (Daniel 7:13-14, 17-18) (with this tension between single individual and community being resolved in Jesus and the church being in Him and members of His body), and Ezekiel's vision of restoration of God's presence in the community, including a permanent place for foreigners (Ez 47:22-23) (p 105) Chapter 6 is on lament and God's people dealing with the trauma of exile. On this note, Dr Imes discusses how psalms, though innocuous to us, "are a form of insurrection" when "set against the backdrop of Assyrian or Persian rule", as the people of God "form an alternative community, gathered around the praise of Yahweh." (p 124) Today, "When we sing together about Yahweh's kingship during an election year, were reminded that our ultimate hope is in God, not our national government or local leaders. When we offer thanks to God for what he has done on our behalf, our posture shifts away from self-congratulation or self-aggrandizement toward gratitude and humility." (p 124) Dr Imes then ends the chapter with a discussion on Christian nationalism, concluding as such: "A true grasp of the doctrine of the family of God sucks the wind out of Christian nationalism because it recognizes that our truest identity and most fervent hope is not found in our nation but in our church family. Every time we pray the Lord's Prayer—"Your kingdom come, your will be done"—we're praying for the end of America and every other national entity on earth. God's kingdom is the only one that will last." (p 127) I commend Dr Imes for this bold stance and message to our American brothers and sisters in Christ, knowing full well how some corners of American evangelicalism will react to her message here.

Chapter 7 covers the return from exile. Interestingly, much like The Bible Project videos (by Tim Mackie) on these books, Dr Imes interprets Zerubbabel's rejection of help in Ezra 4 and the ending of Nehemiah where the people of Judah undergo mass divorce not as positive (which seems to be the popular interpretation, based on my quick survey of study bibles I have on hand), but as negatives. She argues that Zerubbabel's contemporary Zechariah painted a broader and more vibrant picture of the community of God (Zechariah 2:10-12), Deuteronomy 23 (which Nehemiah and his men were presumably relying on in the mass divorce) has an in-bult expiration date (see Deut 23:2-3 NET, NLT, etc.) which Nehemiah and his men missed or ignored, and God indicated to Malachi that He hates divorce (2:16). The broader tone of the canon where Ezra-Nehemiah comprises of multiple sections, each ending in an anticlimax, lends credence to Dr Imes' (and Tim Mackie's) interpretation (pp 129-134). The anticlimactic ending of this book leads into Chronicles (in the Hebrew canon), which focuses on the Messiah (eg. Chronicles leaves out David's failure with his actions regarding Bathsheba, featuring mostly only his positive stories), the Temple and God's presence (eg. Chronicles contains David's preparation for building the temple, which is absent in 2 Samuel), and ends with a call: "Whoever among you from all his people has Yahweh his God with him, let him go up" (2 Chronicles 36:23).

And with this, the New Testament begins. Jesus is born , but he speaks of his "brothers and sisters" not by blood, but by "redefin[ing] family around himself", with membership in this family "by allegiance to Jesus as King." (p 151) Jesus' disciples carry this "countercultural movement" around the world, subverting the honour system of the Roman empire and growing the church as family (which included sharing of resources (Acts 4:32-37); and this explains why Ananias and Sapphira's sin in Acts 5 was so great) (pp 159-161). Jesus' ascension (Acts 1:1-9) parallels Moses' ascent on Sinai (Ex 24:9-18), including eating with appointed leaders, commanding them to wait, "giving" (the law for Moses, and the Holy Spirit for Jesus), and their entering the cloud (p 164). Thus the Holy Spirit falls on the believers, and just as the nation of Israel is constituted at Sinai, God's Spirit descends on His new temple at Pentecost (pp 163-166).

Chapter 9 covers the ministry of the church, which includes people from different backgrounds eating together (cf. Romans 14-15), being of one body by virtue of God's act of restoration and unity with Christ, and thus as coworkers, we "work hard" for kingdom purposes. Dr Imes also has two pages in this chapter for a brief discussion on women in ministry with Paul, where she begins by agreeing that church practices must be "grounded in the Scriptures" and not follow "cultural trends and sensibilities", followed by urging the reader to consider the women listed in Romans 16, Paul's approval of women prophesying, and examples of women teaching (eg. Priscilla in Acts 18:26) in determining the scope of verses such as 1 Tim 2:12 and 1 Cor 14:35 (pp 172-173). I commend Dr Imes for her effort, but I am not sure if it was a good idea to try to mount an argument on such a hot topic in the short span of two pages – I can see an opponent of women in ministry knocking down the brief two pages (due to its lack of space for development of the argument) and walking away more convinced of his position. But I hope I'm wrong, and someone truly walks away with a greater willingness to consider the alternative position of women in ministry. Dr Imes also includes a section where I think she is more pastoral (considering that there are little to no citations of Bible passages or theologians in this sidebar), addressing the question of when to leave a church – Dr Imes advises that apart from "three situations-rejection of scriptural authority, authoritarian leadership, or abusive behavior that is not properly addressed-we should be very hesitant to
leave a church. Scripture asks us to treat other believers as family, even when we disagree or have different preferences about what happens when we gather. If God's goal is to bring people together from different walks of life who will become God's family to one another, then we only hinder God's mission when we hop from place to place trying to find people who look and think exactly like we do." (p 181)

In the last chapter, Dr Imes ends by once again commending the family of God to the reader. She submits that we humans are designed to point to God, and true faith in God involves a completely different worldview, values, and membership in a different family where the boundaries are drawn by who has surrendered their life to Jesus.
"God established the church as a community of his followers who show allegiance to his rule and carry on his work in the world. Together we testify to the gracious work he accomplished in his Son, Jesus the Messiah, who made it possible for us to join this international, intergenerational family of faith that spans history, makes history, and brings history to its goal with one surprise after another. Together we defeat the darkness by participating in the reign of God and cultivating servanthood and humility. By receiving God's sacrificial love for us and by expressing that love to one another, we participate in God's one and only plan to restore creation and fulfill his covenant promises. Above all, the Spirit of God is present among us as we are united in Christ to one another." (p 206)

Brief thoughts
This was a good read, and as stated in the introduction, I would recommend it to someone curious about church or who may have been jaded or burnt out by church. I think Dr Imes did a great job of tracing the theme of God's community through the canon, while demonstrating how the points covered by the various biblical authors speak to believers today without compromising on the historical and canonical contexts.

This is my first book by Dr. Carmen Joy Imes and it will not be my last. The book was a very rich treatment on the church as God’s family but written at a very accessible level. In a note on her book, the author gives below quote as the thesis; and I agree that she made met that goal.

“Becoming God's Family is my love letter to and for the church. I take an unflinching look at the problems that are painfully obvious--narcissistic leaders, systems that protect abusers, pettiness, prejudice, and more--but conclude that the church is still God's best plan to carry out his will in the world.”

I’ve been part of church family all of my adult life and find myself experiencing many of the challenges and emotions discussed but I experienced great hope as I read the book and was reminded of what God’s plan is for his church. Many things hit me anew, I am reading an ARC copy from NetGalley that is not easy to page through so I can’t easily pull all my highlights and thoughts on the book. I will plan to purchase a copy when it is on sale and add to my review at that time. I can’t wait to share it with many others as well, I envision great discussion around this topic.

#BecomingGodsFamily #NetGalley

This is the second book by Carmen Joy Imes that I've read, I loved reading Bearing God's Name so was excited to read another book by Imes...and this book didn't disappoint.

I love the way the author brings the Bible to life. Weaving stories in from the Old Testament and shows you how it's relevant to us today, what we can learn from Scripture and how to apply it to our lives
In this book, Imes shows the importance of church in a manner that is relevant to today's society. Using Scripture she reveals aspects of what it means to be God's family in a way that is fresh and compelling. Reminding us to be united despite our differences, reminding us to be not stop meeting as a church, reminding us to not dismiss children as "future church". There's so much from this book that I will take with and continue to mull over.

Cannot recommend Carmen Joy Imes enough! She shows such Biblical depth whilst also writing in a manner that is easy to digest.

Imes captured me at the beginning, with a reference to Narnia! Written to Christians, the author explains with this book what the church is and why it is important. She covers a range of topics from children to worship to unity to show why watching a sermon on YouTube is no substitute for meeting together. She ends each chapter with suggested reading for those who want to delve further, as well as links to relevant bible project films. I learned a lot from reading this book and would recommend it. Carmen skillfully uses stories to impart theological knowledge- while being a relatively easy read, this book is full of truth and wisdom. This is the first book I have read by Carmen Imes, but it won't be the last.

A good resource that wades into the complexity and benefits of Christian community life

(I received a free digital copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review)

Becoming God’s Family: Why the Church Still Matters by Carmen Joy Imes (IVP Academic, Oct 2025)
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)
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The gist
Imes completes her informal trilogy (Bearing God’s Name, Being God’s Image) with an expansive biblical-theology of the gathered people of God. She argues that the church is “God’s plan A - there is no plan B”—a global, inter-generational family whose primary vocation is to wait together for God to act, embodying his presence in the world. Along the way she punches holes in consumer-church metrics and growth hacks, inviting us to rediscover feasting, lament, and praise as the glue that binds a community.
What works
1. All-of-Scripture sweep. Imes marches from Genesis to Revelation, weaving together temples, tabernacles, family genealogies, Pentecost fire and eschatological hope. The scope is thrilling and gives readers a “whole-Bible” lens for ecclesiology.
2. Concrete vignettes. Stories of Rizpah’s vigil, Ruth’s loyalty, and Samuel's faith keep the theology embodied and pastoral.
3. Timely critiques. In an age of #ChurchToo scandals and de-churching statistics, Imes offers a constructive path: practice of lament, “festive kinship,” and cross-shaped service that resists both nationalist nostalgia and algorithmic individualism.
4. Accessible scholarship. As in her earlier books, the academic scaffolding never overwhelms the lay reader. Most chapters land with practical questions and group-discussion prompts. Perfect for a small-group study.

Where it drags
• Breadth over spark. Because Imes tries to touch every corner of the canon, individual chapters occasionally feel like brisk fly-overs. The crystalline focus of Bearing God’s Name (Sinai) and Being God’s Image (Imago Dei) is diffused here; the organizing metaphor of “family” can’t corral all the material with equal energy.
• Missing narrative ignition. The earlier volumes carried a “Whoa, I’ve never seen that before” moment around every corner; this one, while competent, rarely delivers that jaw-drop.

Choice quotes
• “The church is the community that reminds the world that God is God.”
• “Waiting together is our most important job.”
• “God is not looking for people who will do his work for him, but for those who will carry his presence.”

Who should read it
* Christians wondering whether church is still worth the bruises.
* Ministry leaders searching for a non-pragmatic, non-nostalgic ecclesiology.
* Small groups willing to wrestle with lament, justice and ethnic diversity.

The bottom line

Imes hasn’t quite recaptured the magic of her first two outings, but she still delivers a robust, scripturally rich portrait of the church that resists both cynicism and consumerism. If you’re after a fast plot or groundbreaking thesis, you may be left wanting. If you need a carefully stitched biblical tapestry that reminds you why showing up on Sunday still matters, this book is more than worth your time.

I love Dr. Carmen Joe Imes’ writing and teaching and this book was no exception. I love how she takes such important but huge concepts of Christianity, and is able to make them approachable and real. Thank you NetGalley & IVP Academic for the e-ARC!