The hosts broke the deadlock midway through the second half when Paddy Madden poked home, before Tom Soares equaliser.
Russ Wilcox’s men regained the lead when Paul Hayes pounced on the rebound of his own penalty, before Danny Rose curled a leveller in the last minute.
The result takes Scunthorpe ahead of Rochdale at the top of the table after the latter lost 3-0 away to play-off hopefuls Mansfield Town.
Fleetwood’s hopes of automatic promotion were dealt a blow as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Morecambe in the Lancashire derby, while Chesterfield sealed their place in the play-offs with 2-1 win at Hartlepool.
Oxford United moved into the top seven with a 2-0 victory at Plymouth, while Southend lost 1-0 at home to Wimbledon and York were held to a 1-1 draw by Accrington.
There were some big results for the teams at the bottom of the table too, as John Marquis struck to hand relegation-threatened Northampton Town a vital 1-0 win over Burton Albion, their first victory in six home games.
Chris Wilder’s side remain in the relegation zone, but are now level on points with nearest rivals Wycombe, who lost 2-0 to Newport.
Bottom-of-the-table Torquay picked up an equally crucial 2-1 win at Bristol Rovers, although a seven-point gap between them and safety means their survival chances remain slim.
Elsewhere, Exeter remain in the relegation mix after being held to a 1-1 draw by Cheltenham, while Portsmouth all but sealed their place in League Two next season with a resounding 4-1 win over Dagenham.
