The gospel can not be heard or understood.. even in it simplicity, without God opening ears and eyes to see it and hear it..
The natural man refuse the gospel because it "does not make sense" .. how can one be saved if he does not do it himself??
The natural man wants to be the captain of his own ship..he wants the credit for being saved.. only seeing our sin as God does makes us understand we could NEVER save ourselves or even contribute to our salvation
Pride.. caused the fall and keeps unregenerate man in it
Which raises the question do we have absolute free will, or because of our fallen nature do we need God to intervene for us in order to be saved? IOW, where does our faith come from. Is our faith a response to a culture we are raised in, our own insights, or an external force?
The natural man refuse the gospel because it "does not make sense" .. how can one be saved if he does not do it himself??
If this is our "default setting" since the fall where does the strength, or insight, come from to see it is wrong?
Amen.
Pride.. caused the fall and keeps unregenerate man in it
Most, if not every commentator would agree with you. I don't believe it was pride that caused the fall. I believe it was a lack of wisdom that comes from God. Please note what you stated first, that God must open the eyes and ears. It is the only way godly wisdom can come.