With news late last night that President Obama had abruptly walked out on “debt ceiling” talks with the Republicans, I was reminded once again just how relevant Bible prophecy is.

For many years, scoffers who made Bible prophecy teachers the butt of jokes mocked the observations made by these teachers. Among these observations was the insistence that one day, we would see both a global economic system and a global religious system.

The U.S. economy is—let’s be realistic—shaky. It is more unstable than any of us have ever seen, save those elderly souls who remember the Great Depression.

We are now worried about defaulting, not only as individuals, but as a nation. We understand that if Greece’s economy falls (and the Greeks don’t have any money), there could be a domino effect in Europe. China holds a lot of notes, but if the nations of the world implode economically, the Chinese will follow.

The Bible’s book of Revelation is read in different ways by different people. Those same Bible prophecy teachers I mentioned earlier see it as a portal of sorts to seeing broad outlines of the future.

Revelation, John’s vision, does imply these global alliances. Do yourself a favor (the book’s text announces that the reader will be blessed just by reading it) and read Revelation. Do it with no one around so you won’t be distracted. See if you can detect evidences for a “one-world” system for the future.

You’ll be surprised what you might find.