The focus on when a man is born again must be on The Lord, not the man, for a man has no more control over the work of the Holy Spirit than he does the wind. When one is born again he will believe, but The Lord had to work the miracle of the new birth in his heart first. A dead man cannot make himself come alive. Only God can do that. That’s what Christ Himself taught Nicodemus.
“Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
-—John 3:7-8
I highly recommend the teaching series which is part of today’s $5 Friday special from Ligonier:
“The New Birth” by Dr. Steven Larson
http://www.ligonier.org/store/the-new-birth-download/