By Madison Franks, Student Writer
OTTERBURNE, MB – Providence boasts a myriad of fantastic courses, each of which providing new knowledge and inspiration for the students enrolled. There is a wonderful problem that exists at Providence in which choosing one’s electives is difficult because there are so many good choices one can make, and one of these options is a course on the book of Revelation. In fact, Providence has two courses on this subject, one for the university college and one for the seminary, because the school recognizes the riches this book contains. The Revelation courses are taught by Dr. Heather Macumber and Dr. Joshua Coutts, and each provide their students with unique and inspiring ideas on how God shows up in this biblical book.
“Somewhere along the way, I was oriented to a deeper and richer approach to Revelation,” said Joshua Coutts when asked what made him interested in teaching this course to seminary students. Having never had a course himself offered on the book, Dr. Coutts decided to teach a book that is often misunderstood. Similarly, Dr. Macumber did not have the opportunity to learn from Revelation while she was in school, and thus she also decided to teach one herself. “It has significance in the church because of how much worship is drawn from it. I like to teach the whole of the text,” Dr. Macumber commented.
So, why is it important for Providence to have not one, but two courses on the same biblical book? For starters, Dr. Macumber is right when she said that the church draws much of its worship from the book. As a leading Christian university college, Providence strives to create worshipful spaces that provide its students and employees with places to encounter Christ, and it is He who appears in the pages of Revelation. Dr. Coutts noted that “it is a book that is designed to disciple you, and primarily orient you to what is at the centre of all things. It’s intended to galvanize fidelity to Jesus. That’s always relevant.”
“Revelation is a neat way to reorient ourselves to what God is really doing,” agreed Dr. Macumber. “I love that it is pulling back the veil and gives us a little glimpse into what is really going on in the heavenly throne room.” It is exactly these goings-on in the Throne Room that make teaching Revelation so important for Providence today, because “on the other side of the very air that we breathe is a reality where a King sits enthroned,” says Dr Coutts, and if this reality is present, it ought to be taught. Specifically, it must be taught with deep care and passion, something Heather Macumber and Joshua Coutts do exceptionally well.
Along with containing the worship scenes that inspire much of the modern church’s music, Revelation likewise holds difficult passages that cannot be ignored. Because “a lot of students are either terrified by or just avoid it,” said Dr. Coutts, “what better time or place to face something hard head on than in a seminary or a university course.”
Indeed, taking the time to intentionally read Revelation within a solid community is not only beneficial, but necessary. “It was meant to be read and understood in churches – both ancient and modern – to help navigate a troubled world,” said Dr. Macumber. Because there is difficulty in interpreting the text of Revelation, Dr. Coutts makes a point in his course that Revelation is “a book centrally about Jesus. If you’re the kind of person who is oriented toward Him, it won’t be that strange.” When asked why a young person should spend their elective on taking a course on Revelation, Dr. Macumber provided this helpful answer: “It helps you to ask hard questions about who you are in the world and about what matters to you. There’s a new day. That’s helpful for where we are now in the world. Everything is dark and grim, and yet there’s another time that’s coming.”
Both Dr. Coutts and Dr. Macumber see within Revelation’s pages the intrinsic hope that was first breathed into its words, and they both equally aim to teach this hope to their students. Whether you are an older student studying in the seminary, a student just out of high school in an undergraduate program, or anywhere in between, taking a course on Revelation would prove to be a wonderfully encouraging time in which your faith will be stirred up and you will leave with a greater adoration of Christ.
Interested in taking a course examining the book of Revelation at Providence? Sign up for Dr. Heather Macumber’s upcoming course BIBL 3616, which is being offered in the Winter semester of the 2025-2026 school year.
