We are ruined by fancying we are what we know or read, or that we can make ourselves so in the turn of a thought; or if we do see and own a defect, yet thinking tenderly of ourselves when we are chargeable with horrid depravity, and absolutely unfit for God. (Thomas Adam, Private Thoughts on Religion)
“The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?” (Jeremiah 17:9).
The heart is so deceitful that it will read a book and think that it is just like what it reads or at least close to what it reads. In other words, reading without knowledge of a deceitful heart can be dangerous to the soul. It is the natural bent of the soul (proud and self-centered) to think that it can read something and simply by a fiat of the power of thought it can be changed. Even more, we treat ourselves as if what we read describes us, though of course if what we read is against us and our sin we are prone to dismiss it. The issue, however, is that the heart is so ready to think well of itself because it is full of exalted thoughts of self.
Another issue is that the incipient Pelagianism of the heart that makes it think that it can do what is needed to be done in its own power or by simply thinking thoughts about the issue. But Scripture drives the point home that the heart needs to be changed in reality and not just think better thoughts. There must be true repentance of the heart which is a real and lasting change rather than just a few thoughts toward a subject. So when we read a book and see that it is speaking the truth, we must see that the heart must be changed rather than just agreeing with what it says. It takes the power of God in grace to change a heart, which again shows how the natural inclination of man in his pride does not like that option and would rather flee from the pain of a heart changed by God.
The heart loves to think well of itself and so it can read a book and think that what the book is speaking about in a good way describes the heart. But when a book is read that describes negative things and even horrid things about the soul (sin), we will think better of ourselves and think that the description is not really for “me.” The same thing is true of reading the Bible. When we read Scripture we are reading a book that God uses to show us our sin and our inability to perform anything pleasing to Him apart from His work of grace in the soul, yet we constantly read it as if we have the ability to do so. When the Bible shows us the ugliness of our sin, we tend to think of others instead of ourselves. When we do that, we are thinking highly of ourselves while the wrath of God abides upon us and ourselves. What a terrible deception this is.
When reading the Bible or a book the heart is busy deceiving us about what we are reading. In its pride and exaltation of self it will either smooth over what is said or exalt self beyond any level it has ever attained. Men need truthful hearts and they need to seek the Lord for humility in order to see themselves as they really are. Men need to seek the Lord in order to read with Light rather than the darkness of their worldly hearts and worldly minds. To be even more clear on the matter, in the words of Jesus we cannot do one good or spiritual thing apart from Christ. We must live by grace rather than trying to find good in our own hearts. We must learn to live by grace rather than to think highly of ourselves and to water the Scriptures down. We must learn to look to the cross of Christ constantly rather than trying to find something to buttress our esteem of ourselves by trying to find good or to excuse ourselves our of self-love.
God Loves... Himself 
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