The Bible doesn’t tell us why God continues to let Satan live and do his damage in the world, even though Satan has already been judged. The same thing could be said for sin and suffering. Why does God allow sin and suffering? These are tough questions. The short answer is that God allows them because He is merciful. Now, that may sound strange, but think about the definition of mercy: not getting what you deserve. The Bible says the wages of sin is death (Romans 3:23). What that means is that we deserve to die because of our sinful rebellion to God. But God is a merciful God, and He is giving us a chance to turn back to Him and have eternal life. We still face physical death, but spiritually there is a way out, and that’s through Jesus Christ.

God will someday eliminate Satan, sin, and death forever. In the meantime, He is giving the world an opportunity to turn back to Him (2 Peter 3:8-9). God is being patient. But there will be a time of judgment. That’s what the next verse says (2 Peter 3:10). God will deal with Satan and sin, and in doing so, He will judge all who have refused to turn to Him.

At the same time, God hasn’t forsaken us while we are still on earth. He gave us the Holy Spirit as a way to help us live in this world. The Holy Spirit is in the life of every person who has trusted Jesus by faith (1 Cor. 12:13), but we have to live in such a way that invites the Holy Spirit to control us (Galatians 5:22-23). He also has given us ways to deal with Satan (Ephesians 6:10-18 and 1 Peter 5:8).