Some question whether Christ suffered enough for our sins. After all, He was on the cross for only a few hours, and less than four days in Hell. So how could that be punishment enough for the sins of the world?
Simple. Christ “died” for our sins (1 Cor. 15:3). The punishment the law required for our sins was not the whippings on His back or Hell, but death. Jesus’ substitutionary death perfectly fulfilled the offerings of the OT.
When the Jews of ancient Israel brought their offerings to God for their sins, the priest did not have the sinners wait for eternity before their sins could be covered! No; they merely had to offer the sacrifice according to the custom, and when the sacrifice died with the shedding of blood, the sins were covered (Lev. 1). So was Christ. The Prince of Life died with the shedding of blood, and that was enough to pay the debt for us.
Similarly, some families had a family member that was murdered. Once the murderer was killed, the family had closure because justice was done when the murderer died. The family does not need to wait forever before they feel justice is done!
So it is with Jesus. Besides, He could not stay in Hell anyway, for Hell is for sinners. Since Jesus did not sin, Hell could not hold Him.
Also, if there was no resurrection from the dead according to the Scriptures, then we would still be in our sins (1 Cor. 15:12-19); we would all be going to Hell. If Jesus never rose from the dead, then He would be found a mere man like the billions of men before and after Him. But because He rose from the dead, we have hope that He will raise us up as well. His resurrection is proof that He was God’s Man, and we will face a judgment to come (Acts 17:31). You would have no faith at all in a dead man, would you?
