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If God is God, it seems natural for me that He knows those that will come to Him from the foundation of the world. never mind the obvious verses that state plainly that we are predestined, there are other verses that say similar things. Rev 6:10-11 comes to mind. If God knows the day and hour Jesus was to die on the cross, does He not know His own people and when they will come to Him? It's all planned out, it's been written down, and will happen just as it is written. If there was a "plan B", would that not mean God isn't God? The statement that Jesus made, "I am the Truth, The Way, and The Life" is literally true. When Jesus said "Lazarus is dead" in Luke 11:14 just after He told them Lazarus sleeps, which was true? Did Jesus lie? That's the reason Lazarus was left for 4 days and was stinking when Jesus chose to come "wake" him up. The Truth IS Jesus, not whether Lazarus was dead or not.

People have fretted for some reason for centuries whether or not we are predestined to go to heaven or not. The Truth says we are "given" to the Father and He will not lose one of us. When we are "given" is up for discussion, but Scripture clearly says we were predestined.

Now OTOH, the parable .....

Luk 11:5 And He said to them, "Which of you shall have a friend, and go to him at midnight and say to him, 'Friend, lend me three loaves; Luk 11:6 for a friend of mine has come to me on his journey, and I have nothing to set before him'; Luk 11:7 and he will answer from within and say, 'Do not trouble me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give to you'? Luk 11:8 I say to you, though he will not rise and give to him because he is his friend, yet because of his persistence he will rise and give him as many as he needs. Luk 11:9 "So I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. Luk 11:10 For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened.

These verses speak of a Christian witnessing to a lost brother and the friend is praying to God to give Him 3 loaves, The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. God has shut the door and His children are in bed. However, because the friend asked, He arose and gave him what he wanted. Now was the friend predestined or not? The God of the Bible would know the man would ask, and be ready to grant his prayer of salvation to his friend. Does our God know who will knock and seek? IMO, yes.

Just another example, Noah preached repentance for 75 to 120 years, depending on what you believe, but no one went into the Ark but Noah and family. When Noah entered the Ark, it was 7 days till the rain started. Did anyone go in with him? Did anyone build their own boat to weather the storm? Clearly God either knew no one would come, or He controlled the people that wouldn't come.

One thing to keep in mind while pondering these subjects is, God has NO time. He is the "I Am". He sees the beginning from the end. He knows the hour and minute of your birth and death. Now, does he predestine you, or does He just know the ending? It's the same result either way. He will not destroy the earth until all His children are in heaven with Him. Every last one. He knows who they are. Several verses speak about Jesus not losing one the Father has given Him. He already knows who you are whether you have repented or not. I was 43 when I became born again. Now that I look back, I can see God working in my life when I wasn't even living for Him, even to the point of saving my life when I shouldn't have lived to give me time to repent.

I now ponder if the Holy Spirit is irresistible? If not, what took me so long to repent? I've come to believe He knew when I would come to Him and used circumstances to build my faith the way He wanted it. It's all about Jesus, otherwise we would boast. Even the measure faith we have is a gift from Him. We are empty, dead vessels and everything comes from Him. How could we every think we had anything to do with anything?

Now, does he predestine you, or does He just know the ending?

Good post, but to answer this question: God is proactive, not merely reactive, with man's salvation.

"'But there are some of you who do not believe.' (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) And he said, 'This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.'" (Joh 6:64-65)

Whether you believe, or reject the teachings of God, is entirely dependent on the granting of the Father. The "Christian is not the result of persuasion, but of power" (Ignatius, Epistle to the Romans). If you do not believe, it is because it was not given to you to believe.

God does indeed use circumstances, human instrumentality, and providence to draw His elect. However, no matter how many seeming "hoops" you had to jump through (all our struggles, though we do not understand always why God puts us through them, are for our benefit, for "all things work together for good to them who love God, who are the called according to His purpose"), it must be acknowledged that salvation is all of God. All things occur at His command, and nothing is owed to our alleged merits or greater knowledge in this process of salvation:

1Co_3:7 So then neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that watereth; but God that giveth the increase.