Amen, amen, I say to you, unless one is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God. In the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus, a Pharisee and secret admirer of his, we see a continuation of the self-manifestation of Jesus which was introduced when Jesus performed a sign at Cana of Galilee (cf. John 2:1ff). In the passage constituting today’s Gospel reading, Jesus, through the mouth of Nicodemus, is revealed both as being indwelt by God and as having come from God: “We know that you are a teacher who has come from God since no one can do these sign that you are doing unless God is with him.” Nicodemus’ recognition of Jesus’ divine origins rested on Jesus’ ability to work signs (Nicodemus must have been aware of some other signs performed by Jesus in addition to the changing of water into wine). In response, Jesus proceeded to talk about the need to be born again as a requisite to belonging in the kingdom of God. The signs he was performing and which Nicodemus was rightly pointing out as proof of his divine origins were evidence that the kingdom of God had indeed been inaugurated. The train had already left the station and everybody needed to be on board since it is only those who are aboard the train with Jesus (those who are born again) who can see the signs and interpret them accordingly. 
To be born again is to realign oneself on the side of God (we come from God but our sins turn us away from God). To be born again is to allow oneself to be transformed by an encounter with the resurrected Jesus. To be born again is to embody the values that issue forth from the teachings of Jesus. To be born again is to see the world through the eyes of Jesus. For it is only when we are born again that we are enabled not only to see God acting concretely in the world but also to make that presence felt by those whom we encounter. It is she/he who has realigned the self with God who can work towards the realization of peace, justice, and respect for creation that is the panacea to the problems that plague our world. The mighty signs which Jesus was performing and which Nicodemus recognized were possible because Jesus was with God. May our transformation lead us, together with Jesus, to effect change in our world.