The Church of God (Cleveland) affirms the traditional reading of Genesis 1:1-2 as teaching that God created the heavens and the earth. The passage is understood as establishing the absolute beginning of creation: before these words, nothing existed except God. The Church affirms the literal creation of the heavens and earth by God's word and power.

The Church reads this in light of Trinitarian theology: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit were all active in creation. John 1:3 ('All things were made through him') is understood as affirming Christ's role in creation as the eternal Word through whom God created. Genesis 1:1-2 establishes that creation is God's work, that God is prior to and transcendent over creation, and that the material world is real, good, and created by God.