Calvary Chapel reads Genesis 1:1-2 as the literal opening of creation history. Chuck Smith's expository teaching presented the straightforward account: 'In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.' This is taken as historical narrative, not metaphor. The passage establishes God's creative power and the chronology of creation—all things made in six days.

The plain reading avoids entanglement with theories about evolution or deep time. Genesis 1:1-2 is presented as God's own account of creation's origin, and believers are called to trust this testimony. The framework is foundational to dispensationalist understanding: God creates, humanity is made in God's image, humanity falls into sin, and God executes his redemptive plan throughout history.