Ivan Satyavrata served as a member of the World Vision India Board before being elected as Chairman of World Vision International in November 2022. He concluded his tenure in December 2025. He is currently Pastor Emeritus of Assembly of God Church Kolkata.
Dr Ivan holds a BTh from Southern Asia Bible College in India, BDiv from Union Biblical Seminary in India, ThM from Regent College in Canada, and PhD from the Oxford Centre for Mission Studies. He taught full-time for 21 years and served as president at the Southern Asia Bible College (now Centre for Global Leadership Development) in Bangalore. His key publications include Holy Spirit, Lord, and Life Giver (2009), God Has Not Left Himself Without Witness (2011), and Pentecostalism and the Poor (2017).
Pentecostals speak often of power, but what kind of power truly reflects the Spirit of Christ? This presentation will discuss the biblical ideal of Spirit-power as revealed in Jesus’ Nazareth Manifesto: good news for the poor, freedom for the oppressed, and healing for the broken. This power is not for control or manipulation, but power for restoration. Drawing from Luke’s Gospel, the concept of Jubilee, and the lived realities of the poor, the presentation seeks to expose the web of lies that entrap the powerless—systems of oppression such as false cultural narratives and spiritual forces. True Spirit-power is rooted in and flows from the incarnation, the towel and basin, and the cross. It is power made perfect in weakness, reflected in servanthood, and unleashed in love. This paper calls the Pentecostal church to embody the Spirit’s mission—not only in signs and wonders, but in sacrificial service, justice, and holistic transformation. In a world hungry for hope, the Spirit empowers the empty-handed to rise, speak, and flourish.
The history of the Jesus Movement is a story of ongoing encounter with pre-existent religious traditions as it spread over time across various geographical regions and people groups across the globe. Life in the twenty-first century is marked by multiculturalism and religious plurality, and as various religions passionately assert the supremacy of their own truth claims, it heightens the potential for communal conflict. Sharing Jesus in a way that affirms his absolute and universal lordship and yet shows sensitivity and respect for people of other faiths is thus today a burning existential concern. Pentecostals are uniquely endowed with the spiritual resources to respond effectively to this need to clarify and amplify the ‘Voice’ of Truth, God’s Word in Christ, amidst the confusing cacophony of religious sounds in our world today.
