While the picture of the old dude looks more like Scrooge, not really showing a Christian like attitude and appearance. I could be alright with the first part of the quote there. I'm not Calvinist so I really don't get all their beliefs, even though I have tried...I could agree with the God has foresight of those that will choose him and that is why they are the elect. In order to be able to choose though there has to be a choice. So are you saying that the ones that will Choose to Serve God are saved and the ones that will not choose God are not saved and God knows who they are. If so then I am on board with that....If you are saying that some people never have a choice either way, then well I can't be on board with that because the Bible teaches us differently.
What I'm saying is all mankind deserves eternal punishment, as a result of being a descendant of Adam. Their minds and hearts are radically corrupted by the Fall. They do not desire spiritual things, including a relationship with God, unless God regenerates them. And, everyone who is regenerated responds in faith and repentance. There is a choice, but the choice is for God, because the heart has been changed by heart. The person no longer has the nature of the fallen man, which is to follow his spiritual father Adam, but has a new nature like Christ's that wants to love and please God.
All mankind willfully rejects God, unless a change of heart occurs. They need this heart of flesh.
God changes the heart of some people, as an act of grace, and doesn't change the heart of other people. He passes over them, and they suffer the justice they deserve. He is not obligated to extend mercy to anyone, but out of grace, he extends it to some individuals, who are the elect.
All mankind rejects God by default until they experience this new birth.
The concept of corporate guilt is another one of the teachings that free-willers deny. They cannot fathom that God would judge all mankind by Adam's act, and condemn them to eternal punishment. But, the reality is that all mankind was condemned through Adam's sin. This is clearly taught in Romans 5.
God elects to save some, and gives them a heart of flesh that causes them to desire Him. The only reason they desire him is due to this heart of flesh. Faith and repentance flows from it. They are joined to Jesus Christ, and become one with him, and start to produce spiritual fruit due to this union.
Just like Adam's sin was credited to all mankind, Jesus' righteousness is credited to the elect. This state is referred to as being "in Christ". The rest are not in Christ. They are still in Adam, until (and if) God regenerates them, giving them new life. Until then, they are spiritually dead due to Adam's sin.
I suggest reading Ephesians 2:1-10.
No, I do not believe God simply knows who will choose him, and saves those individuals based solely on their decision. God does know those individuals, but their election is unconditional, ie, not based on foreknowledge of their decision. Their decision would be to reject Him, unless he regenerates them.
Reformed theology teaches that God chooses unconditionally. Unconditionally means that he does not choose people according to foreknowledge of their choices. He chooses them based on foreknowledge in the sense that he fore-loves them. He regenerates them, giving them a heart of flesh, which responds to him in faith and repentance.
And, everyone that he gives this new heart to responds in faith and repentance. The rest never receive this new heart. And, they willingly reject God because they hate God. The only thing that changes this is the new birth, which takes the person out of the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light.
I realize the idea that God is sovereign over salvation is foreign to the free-willer mentality, and it is something they will not accept. It is especially hard for Westerners to accept this fact. But that is what Scripture teaches. I recommend reading the book of Romans in fine detail. Also, John 6, 10 and Ephesians 1.
Notice, if you read John 10, that Jesus' sheep believe because they are his sheep. They are not his sheep simply because they believe. John is clear in this.
And, you may want to look at the threads I've created in the past regarding unconditional election. I line up the Scriptural proofs in this regard on these threads.