You are getting right on track. A great re-boot Scott. This is commentary I want to read, to reflect and to grow on! Thank you, sir!
Nancy
Nancy, thank you – that’s kind. But let me level with you: “getting right on track” makes me wonder if you believe I have been wandering off the reservation all this time. Was I the guy in the wilderness chewing on locusts with John the Baptist? Maybe. Nancy, let me share something. For too long, I’ve played it safe – thinking the hard truths, but rarely voicing them.
Launching The Scott Sheet wasn’t me waking up one morning and deciding, “Hey, let’s lob grenades from the recliner.” No, this is conviction. Calling. A fire-in-the-bones moment. Jeremiah put it perfectly: “His word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones; I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.” (Jer. 20:9). That’s me. I can’t keep quiet anymore.
But here’s the tension: people have long come to me as the “principled peacemaker.” That role still matters. But Jesus – the Prince of Peace – also said, “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” (Matt. 10:34). And let’s be honest, you won’t hear that verse squeezed between MercyMe and a marriage conference ad on Christian radio.
Jesus didn’t show up to hand out participation trophies. He showed up to divide light from darkness, truth from deception, sheep from wolves. If our King carries a sword, then maybe it’s time we stopped swinging pool noodles in the name of “civility.”
Truth and Love: Awkward Roommates
Paul tells us to “speak the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15). Not “speak the truth when it’s comfortable,” not “speak the truth if you can phrase it like a Hallmark card.” Truth first, then love. The combo isn’t optional – it’s maturity.
But let’s be clear: “in love” doesn’t mean whispering like a church mouse. It means your motive is restoration, not ego. If you’re just out there owning the libs with killer memes just to feel superior, congratulations – you’ve joined the zombie horde of internet rage-peddlers.
Righteous Anger: Allowed, But Handle With Care
Jesus flipped tables (Matt. 21:12). He made a whip. And no, it wasn’t a “gentle whip,” so stop trying to sanitize it for VBS. The point is, righteous anger has its place. Paul backs it up: “In your anger, do not sin.” (Eph. 4:26).
So yes, get mad. Just don’t lie, slander, or dehumanize while you’re doing it. But also – don’t sit there sipping decaf while culture bulldozes truth. Silence isn’t virtue; it’s negligence.
The Watchman or the Weasel?
In Ezekiel 33, God calls Ezekiel a watchman: if he sees danger and stays quiet, the blood is on his hands. That’s heavy. That means if I shut up out of fear or comfort (or not wanting to offend my former radio listeners), I’m not being loving – I’m being a coward. A bathrobe-clad weasel on the wall while the city burns.
And I don’t know about you, but I’m done with bathrobe cowardice.
So What’s the Point?
Here it is: you can be bold without being brutal. Fierce without being filthy. Honest without being hateful. The difference comes down to intent. Are you wielding the sword of truth because you love people enough to call them back – or because you enjoy the smell of your own righteousness?
Jesus flipped tables, scorched hypocrites, and dropped truth bombs – but He always aimed at redemption. That’s the model. That’s the mission. Redemption and love.
So yes, I’ll keep blasting away here on The Scott Sheet. But my goal isn’t destruction – it’s clarity, conviction, and maybe even redemption. If that stings, good. Maybe it should.
Now, let’s sharpen the sword, open the Word, and get to work.
