# “God’s smiling face” by Kelly Kapic

- Link: https://tollelege.net/2026/03/09/gods-smiling-face-by-kelly-kapic/
- Published: 2026-03-09T13:41:01-05:00
- Author: tollelege

“Corporate worship looks backward and forward, and in the process, it provides us
with a gospel reorientation in the present. In corporate worship we can see afresh
how Christ is the center of each element, not simply as the one who teaches us what
to do, in a sense, but as the one who himself did it or the one to whom it points.

hether we speak of calling, prayer, or offerings, each element of corporate worship
works along all three strands of the three-corded rope I introduced earlier: _Messiah,
ecclesia, and ego._ Too often we only analyze the I, but that not only misses the
larger whole but also misses profound aspects of the small part it concentrates 
on.

I (_ego_) am part of the body of Christ (_ecclesia_), and that placement in the 
body defines who I am. We are vitally connected to the incarnate Lord (_Christos_)
who lived, died, rose, and ascended, who now and forever lives for and in us. So
when we gather to sing, we don’t just sing to the Savior; we join the chorus that
he himself leads (**Heb 2:12)**.

When we receive the benediction, we don’t just hear of God’s smiling face; we see
it by beholding Christ our Mediator. When we give our offerings to share with those
in need, we do so as those who have received the great offering of God himself in
and through his Son and by his Spirit.

Each element of corporate worship, therefore, has an ecclesiological, christological,
and personal aspect to it, each informing the other. Christ, ecclesia, and me. This
is the totus Christus, the whole Christ. These three are not separable options but
rather are dimensions of an organic whole.

This doesn’t mean they are equal: Clearly, Christ is the key and center and head—
but head of what? He is the head of a body, his church, in which he unites us not
only to himself but also to each other. Together we worship Christ and serve our
King, forming communities that are enabled and commanded to show the fruit of the
Spirit.

“In [Christ] you [plural] also are being built together into a dwelling place for
God by the Spirit” (**Eph 2:22**). Individuals matter to God, but these individuals
are secured together “in the Beloved” (**Eph 1:6**). Totus Christus.

Here oneness and distinction dwell together under the umbrella of worship: “There
is one body and one Spirit—just as you were called to one hope that belongs to your
call—one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all
and through all and in all” (**Eph 4:4–6**).

Together we come to see our life in Christ and his body with special power and clarity.
As a gathered people, we are regularly reminded of who Jesus is and what he has 
done for us, his people—the daughters and the sons of God.

Corporate worship reminds us that God first loved us as well as, from the human 
side, Jesus first loved God for us. Grace upon grace; love upon love. This is the
love that flows from the triune God to humanity and then flows back to God through
the human Savior, Jesus of Nazareth, our Priest, our King, our Prophet.”

–Kelly M. Kapic, **_[Christian Life](https://amzn.to/44bLA6W)_,** ed. Michael Allen
and Scott R. Swain, _**[New Studies in Dogmatics](https://amzn.to/44bLA6W)**_ (Grand
Rapids, MI: Zondervan Academic, 2025), 292-293.

[⌊Book cover of 'Christian Life' by Kelly M. Kapic, featuring a geometric design
and the subtitle 'New Studies in Dogmatics'.⌉⌊Book cover of 'Christian Life' by 
Kelly M. Kapic, featuring a geometric design and the subtitle 'New Studies in Dogmatics'
.⌉[

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