Grading On the Curve

I read this morning in God's Word where He says basically that the one who knows better will be held to a higher standard than the one who doesn't. He mentions getting many stripes, as opposed to those who will get few, suggesting that God knows what we know and will "grade" us based on that knowledge. A kind of relativism, if you will. Not to say that He wants us to remain in igorance. He desires us to desire to know His Will and ways and we are to beseech Him for further understanding as we go on in our walk with Him, and not remain on infant milk and be stuck and underdeveloped.
I observed someone today whose actions were not in line with God's will towards treating another person. I was tempted to get angry at them, for I saw, in that, the potential for emotional harm towards that other person, and I loved that innocent one so I didn't want them to get hurt.
Later when I was re-thinking the scenario, I realized that the person was really acting in ignorance. They really didn't know better, and thought they were doing the right thing, because that's all they knew. They had no other point of reference to do differently. So, with that, I trusted that God's grace would cover the effecting result of their behavior for harm on the other's soul. I don't really know if that's how it works, but it might if I know God like I feel like I do.
When I "saw" what I believe God showed me, I had compassion for that one. I have done many things harmfully, in the past and present, which at the time I felt was the right thing. It's all I knew. There's a saying: When we know better, we do better. It's those who know better that are held to a higher standard. It's where the directive "Judge not or you will be judged," comes into play.
I was really tempted to judge this morning whenever I saw someone I loved possibly being hurt by someone else who loved them too, but who also thought, I believe, that what they were doing was "helping" the other person.
There's a difference in someone who "knows not what they're doing," and those who do, and don't care. And then there's the people who "hate" their own sin and have submitted it to God trusting that He is at work in them and will deliver them.
Except for the people who are in God's face knowingly mocking Him, mercy is the prescription and it's the thing that will cause people to be led to repentance. (To turn from their sin) Judging someone who really doesn't know better or someone who has already genuinely confessed their sin to God, I believe, can actually perpetuate the sin to get more entrenched.
So what should our response be to those who innocently do harm and they don't see it? Prayer on their behalf:
Oh Father-Help all of us, Lord, who are blind to our own weaknesses and sin. Open our eyes, Lord, so that we can bring those sins to you for cleansing and for your help in stopping to do those things. Give us new ways to deal with those we love and in our relationships. We haven't known what to do or how to do it differently than the way we've always done it. So create a new heart, a new mind in us, so we can relate to others in helpful and not in harmful ways; in ways that build up and not tear down. We all need this, Lord. We all need to be reprogrammed by You, because before we knew You, we listened and acted acccording to the world. Transform us by Your grace. We love you-Your children.