John 15 is extremely hard to understand, in my opinion; you're not wrong when you say that God does not wish that any shall perish-- although equally evident is that many will; "not desiring that any shall perish" is merely explaining how great God's love is for all mankind-- nonetheless, there is evidence of special selection in the Scriptures. 

I believe that the above passage is speaking directly to, and about, the Apostles.  They themselves were specially selected, not by their own merrit or decision, but by God's purpose and understanding.  We must be careful not to judge God's decisions as to whether or not this is "fair", breaks free will, or what-have-you; what is evident from the scriptures is that the Apostles had special selection and we're to be thankful because they bore the burden of spreading the Church and the Word of God like no one today has ever done.

What is difficult is that much of the passage in John 15 is not meant only for the Apostles-- we see reoccuring themes of remaining in Christ, being pruned by the Father, separation from Christ results in being cut off from God (15:1-11).  In vv 12-17 I believe Jesus switches from speaking about his followers (as in vv 1-11), and turns towards his deciples; here he gives them a specific command and calls them friends; I think then in vv16-17 Jesus reassures them that he has chose them for a reason and that if they ask anything of God then He will grant it to them.  He then ends with the same command that he gave to them in v 12 when he turned his attention specifically to them. 

The chapter is a wonderful chapter and you could spend weeks studying it and seeing how His apostles took Jesus' words, implemented them, and passed them on. 

Regarding the question, it is clear that Jesus died once; for all.  (1 Peter 3:18, 2 Cor. 5:14-15). 

My personal opinion is that all have been given the choice, some will take it, many will not, but there are a few that have been specifically Chosen by God, even to this day, for specific purpose to carry a specific burden.

Here is a more indebth view by Dr. John MacArthur

Among the most hotly contested and persistent debates in the history of the confessing church, the doctrine of election is perhaps the greatest of all. The question goes like this: Does God choose sinners to be saved and then provide for their salvation? Or, Does God provide the way of salvation that sinners must choose for themselves?

Where’s the evidence?
This question of choice is called “election” because of the Greek word for those who are chosen—the Bible calls them eklektos. There are many such uses in the Bible (cf. Col. 3:12; 1 Tim. 5:21; Tit. 1:1; 2 John 1), but one of my favorites is in Romans 8:33: “Who will bring a charge against God’s elect?” The answer is, “no one,” but why? Is it because I chose God, or is it because God chose me?

One passage that is critical to the discussion is in the opening chapter of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Immediately after his customary greeting, Paul launches in Ephesians 1:3-14 with a great song of praise. It’s only one sentence—but, with 200 words in the Greek, it may be the longest single sentence in religious literature.

Paul touches on all the great biblical themes in that hyper-complex sentence—sanctification, adoption, redemption, and glorification—and all of them rest on one foundational doctrine, the doctrine of election. The most superlative spiritual blessings stand on Ephesians 1:4—“He chose us [elected us] in Him before the foundation of the world.”

So the doctrine of election is biblical, but what does that passage really teach? I want to help you get a better grasp of that by pointing out what Paul teaches about election. If you are a believer, you can equip yourself for your next conversation on this topic. But more important, as one of His elect you can rejoice in the astonishing kindness God showed you before the world began.

What does it mean?
Paul’s song is essentially his reflection on the amazing truth that God “blessed us with every spiritual blessing … in Christ” (v. 3). And how did He bless us? “He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4).

God didn’t draw straws; He didn’t look down the corridor of time to see who would choose Him before He decided. Rather, by His sovereign will He chose who would be in the Body of Christ. The construction of the Greek verb for “chose” indicates God chose us for Himself. That means God acted totally independent of any outside influence. He made His choice totally apart from human will and purely on the basis of His sovereignty.

Jesus said to His disciples, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you” (John 15:16). And in the same Gospel, John wrote, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (1:12-13, italics mine). And Paul said, “But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth” (2 Thess. 2:13).

Those statements defining God’s sovereign choice of believers are not in the Bible to cause controversy, as if God’s election means sinners don’t make decisions. Election does not exclude human responsibility or the necessity of each person to respond to the gospel by faith. Jesus said, “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out” (John 6:37).

Admittedly the two concepts don’t seem to go together. However, both are true separately, and we must accept them both by faith. You may not understand it, but rest assured—it’s fully reconciled in the mind of God.

You must understand that your faith and salvation rest entirely on God’s election (cf. Acts 13:48). And yet the day you came to Jesus Christ, you did so because of an internal desire—you did nothing against your will. But even that desire is God-given—He supplies the necessary faith so we can believe (Eph. 2:8).

Think about it—if your salvation depends on you, then praise to God is ridiculous. But, in truth, your praise to God is completely appropriate, because in forming the Body before the world began, He chose you by His sovereign decree apart from any of your works. The doctrine of election demonstrates God being God, exercising divine prerogatives. For that we must praise Him.

“But that’s not fair!”
Some are shocked to find that God didn’t choose everyone to salvation. Jesus said, “And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day” (John 6:39, italics mine). God the Father chose certain individuals to form a Body as a gift to Jesus Christ. Every believer is part of that love gift to Christ—a gift of the Father’s love to His Son.

To those who say that is unjust, Paul answers: “What shall we say then? There is no injustice with God, is there? May it never be! For He says to Moses, ‘I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion’” (Rom. 9:14-15).

So why does God still find fault in unrepentant sinners when He didn’t choose them? Doesn’t this deny human responsibility? Is it fair for God to still hold them accountable?

Paul answers all such questions with a rebuke—“who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, ‘Why did you make me like this,’ will it?” (v. 20). Does the clay jump up and ask the potter why it looks the way it does? Not at all.

Some believe that is terribly cold and calculating. But that is only one side of God’s sovereign election. Paul continues in the next chapter by saying, “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved … for ‘whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved’” (10:9, 13).

How these two sides of God’s truth—His sovereignty in choosing us (Rom. 9) and our responsibility to confess and believe (Rom. 10)—reconcile is impossible for us to understand fully. But Scripture declares both perspectives of salvation to be true (John 1:12-13). It’s our duty to acknowledge both and joyfully accept them by faith.

yah.  that'as why i'm going to hell.

Jesus Himself talks about the elect (see Matthew 24 and Mark 13).

And Paul writes in Romans 8:

29 For those whom he [God] foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.
30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.

The gift of salvation is for all. I Timothy 4:10 - "We trust in the living God, who is the saviour of all men, especially of those that believe."

For God so loved the world that whosoever believes should not perish but have everlasting life.

If Calvinism is true, then God purposely created millions of people that will suffer eternally in hell with absolutely no chance of repenting and believing in Jesus because God doesn't love them enough to choose to save them. Completely absurd!!

it seems obvious to me that God isn't particularly interested in saving everyone.  i'm probably not one of the chosen, and i've accepted that... i'm not sure i could ever love a deity who would create people knowing they'd be damned, anyway.  

I think once God finally knows a person isn't going to accept His gift then He quits trying for them. God put all this into words for us but there are so many other ways to communicate. All the Bible needs to be taken in context by each individual reader. Then that person can know for example that we are all the same: God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were yet sinners Christ died for us. Note it says demonstrates, not demonstrated. This means in the present. So God gives everyone a chance.

God offers salvation to everyone. But it's our choice whether we accept that gift or not. Christ died for us ALL, not just for a selected few. 

Simple question: Does the verse you quote from John 15 mention anything at all about being chosen for salvation? No, it doesn't. Jesus is talking about choosing his twelve disciples to go do the good work of spreading His message.

Now was that so hard?

As for salvation-- Salvation is available to and possible for everyone (1 John 2:2, Romans 11:32), but not everyone receives it (Matthew 7:13-14). If your belief encompasses those two facts, then it's biblical enough for most practical purposes. I like to say that when anyone is saved, it's totally because of the sovereign grace of God, and when anyone is lost, it's totally because of their free will. Or as C. S. Lewis put it-- "There are only two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'Thy will be done.'"

@musterion99@xanga - Yes, but if you think about it, God is omnicient, and if the Arminian view is correct, He looked down through the coridors of time and saw all those who would not believe ,and still created them anyway. In essence we are saying the same thing. God created some, knowing full well they would be going to hell.

@cornerstonechwk - Yes, but if you think about it, God is
omnicient, and if the Arminian view is correct, He looked down through
the coridors of time and saw all those who would not believe ,and still
created them anyway. In essence we are saying the same thing. God
created some, knowing full well they would be going to hell.

No, not at all. In Calvinism, God doesn't love us enough to choose to save us, and gives those people absolutely no chance of repenting or believing in him. In Arminiasm, we're not saved because God didn't love us enough to want to save us but because we chose not to receive his love, repent, and believe in him. Not even close to being the same. In Arminiasm, God foreknows that some will choose to not believe, rather than in Calvinism, God foreknowing that he doesn't love millions of people enough to want to save them.