Psalm 40:11-15 You will Not Restrain Your Mercy from Me

One of the beautiful things about God is that He is immutable, unchangeable, the same yesterday, today, and forever. God has a plan that He has put in motion before He even created the universe. His plan will happen. No matter what. There is nothing we can do to change His plan. There is nothing we can do to change God. He is immutable, unchangeable, the same yesterday, today, and forever!

And yet, God invites us to participate in His incredible plan. Through prayer, God allows us to ask for things. He is already setting things in motion to answer our prayers, even before we ask. He is already setting things in motion to answer our prayers, even when we don’t ask. Our asking does not affect His faithfulness. But He wants us to ask anyway.

Please keep that in mind as you read Psalm 40:11-15.

David begins this section with a positive affirmation of our Lord’s mercy. God is all-merciful. “You will not restrain your mercy from me.” David does not guess. He does not say, “I hope you will not restrain your mercy,” or “you probably will not restrain your mercy.” God’s mercy is an established fact. Just as He was merciful yesterday, so will He also be merciful tomorrow. He is immutable, unchangeable, the same yesterday, today, and forever. The same God who has so graciously shown me mercy in the past will also show me mercy in the future... no matter what I do.

Why is it so important to remember this fact? Well, David is currently surrounded by evils beyond number. Between his own sin and the attacks of his enemies, David feels guilt and shame within and abuse and rebukes from without. He is surrounded on all sides, and there is no escape. Could God possibly show Him mercy, even though he is so utterly guilty?

David remembers that God has shown him mercy in the past. He knows that the same God who has forgiven him in the past is immutable, unchangeable, the same yesterday, today, and forever. If God has shown him mercy in the past, then He will certainly show him mercy in the future. This mercy is based on the very character of God, which cannot be changed. The fact that God will show mercy in the future is indisputable.

Still, in the middle of his prayer, David asks God to show him mercy. He knows God will show mercy without him asking. But he asks anyway.

If you are a Christian, then you have already been forgiven of all your sins: past, present, and future. The same God who forgave you when you first put your faith in Christ, is the same God who will forgive you every day for the rest of your life.

This is in no way dependent upon you! You could fail to ask forgiveness time and again—and God would still forgive you. But, God wants you to be involved; He wants you to play a part in the forgiveness process. So, even though you already know that you are forgiven, you should still ask for forgiveness anyway. God will not restrain His mercy from you if you fail to ask, but ask anyway.