John 3:1-8 NASB95
Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; [2] this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” [3] Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again (above) he cannot see the kingdom of God.” [4] Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” [5] Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. [6] That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. [7] Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again (above).’ [8] The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
The phrase “born again” is used twice in these verses, and notice that I put in parenthesis the word “above” because that is actually the correct translation. The New Birth is the emerging of totally new “creatures” in Christ according to 2 Corinthians 5:17. We aren’t a new version of what we used to be, but we are supernatural beings born from above – born of the Holy Spirit. Before you said yes to Jesus, all you had to work with was your flesh – your fallen independent humanity (the fallen false self) – living the best you could with only your flesh to work with. Purposefully joyful living was totally dependent on your own personal wit, will, and personality. As a believer, you now have a nature that was birthed in heaven – birthed by the Holy Spirit. The DNA of the new creation in Christ is heavenly and, therefore, supernatural. You were in Christ when He was crucified, and you were in Him when He was raised from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father. Through your inclusion in His death, resurrection, and ascension, your human nature was saved, healed, and made new in union with the life of Christ. This was all accomplished not through the “works of Christ” on our behalf but in the very “life of Christ” crucified, raised, and ascended. The Christian life is not our trying to become Christlike. Instead, the Christian life is our abiding in His own Christlikeness, that we’ve been joined to (Jesus is really good at being Christlike), and manifesting Him in every place. The Christian new birth is our being included in His “above, heavenly life” by the Holy Spirit. Jesus came that we might have life and have it more abundantly. He did not come to give us abundant life. He came that we might “have” abundant life because He is the abundant life.