It’s what you’d want if you were attending an important event: a front row seat. That way you’d be guaranteed a great view, and up close and personal look at the performance. No wonder the best seats are sold at a massive premium.

Jesus made the decision to allow his three closest friends, Peter, James and John, access to a number of episodes that nobody else - the rest of the disciples included - enjoyed. These were not VIP passes. It isn’t that Jesus considered the three to be more important or significant than the others, but there were strategic reasons for their inclusion. Over the next couple of months, we’ll take a seat alongside them, and see what we can glean from the unique vantage point they enjoyed. As they watched a young girl being raised from the dead, were stunned on the Mount of Transfiguration, and then fought sleep in Garden of Gethsemane, we’ll ask: how did these episodes shape their faith, and prepare them for the joy and pains that they would face as they moved toward apostolic responsibility? And what can we learn from their journey?