Acts 6, 8-14. 7, 34-59.
And Stephen, full of faith and power, did wonders and great signs among the people. Then some of the school called the Libertines, and the Cyrenians, and the Alexanderites, and those who were of Cilicia and Asia, arose and consulted with Stephen. And they could not resist the wisdom and the spirit from which he spoke. Then they judged some men who said: We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God. And they stirred up the people, and the elders, and the scribes, and came near, and took him, and brought him before the council, and set up false witnesses, saying: This man ceaseth not to speak blasphemous words against this holy place, and against the law. For we have heard him say, Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place, and change the customs which Moses gave us.
NB. Here, for the sake of length, a whole chapter is omitted, in which St. Stephen answers such a complaint. For he who arranged this epistle, and so composed it, has left out the best part, and then added this next part of the seventh chapter.
When they heard this, their hearts were pierced, and they gnashed their teeth at him. But when he was full of the Holy Spirit, he looked up to heaven, and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God, and said, Behold, I see heaven open, and the Son of man standing at the right hand of God. And they cried with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed in upon him with one accord, and thrust him out of the city, and stoned him. And the witnesses laid aside their garments at the feet of a young man whose name was Saul. And they stoned Stephen, who cried out, saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. But he knelt down, and cried aloud: Lord, do not keep this sin from them! And when he had said this, he fell asleep.
(1) In order that the text of this epistle may be understood, we must add something that is omitted, and relate the transaction to its cause. There was a dispute about the fact that Stephen had said that there was no use in anything apart from faith.
and that one should not serve God with church buildings or works unless there is faith in Jesus Christ; this faith alone makes one pious and builds the temple of God, which is the believing heart. Against this, the Jews have kept the Mosaic Laws and the
Temple at Jerusalem, of which it is often written in the Bible that God had chosen this place and that His eyes should always see there, and it was also called God's house. With this they wanted to have won.
(2) Then St. Stephen spoke against them the words of Isa. 66:1, 2: "Thus says God, 'Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What kind of house are you building for me? And where shall be the place of my rest? For all these things my hand hath made before, and all things are made before, saith God." This saying is so clear and powerful that no one can contradict it, and concludes that God may not dwell in made houses, because He has made everything that is to be there beforehand and is His beforehand. Moreover, if heaven does not understand him, nor earth, as he says here, that heaven is not his house, but his chair, and earth not his dwelling, but his footstool: how then should he dwell in a built house of men? In the same way Solomon speaks 1 Kings 8:27, who built the same house.
003 And when they had been struck on the head with these and such sayings, that they could bring nothing against them, they went on, and interpreted his words, saying, That Jesus would destroy the temple, and walk in the law of Moses; whereas Stephen said no such thing, but that faith in Jesus Christ alone maketh blessed, and not the law or the temple; after which, if faith were there, then should one have temples, and not temples, and keep the law aright. He only wanted to get rid of the false confidence in works and temples.
(4) Just as now, when the papists hear that works are of no use, that the faith of Christ must first do all things, they also say that good works are forbidden and the commandments of God are blasphemed. If St. Stephen were to preach now, he would not be stoned, but burned with fire or torn apart with tongs by the angry papists.
5 To such false complaint St. Stephen answers, and starting from Abraham, runs through the Scriptures, and indicates how neither
Abraham nor any patriarch built a house for God except Solomon, who built one for him; and yet the former patriarchs were not the less before God because they did not build a house for him. And then Isaiah concludes with this saying, saying, "Solomon built him a house, but the Most High God does not dwell in houses made with hands, as He says through the prophet: Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. What house will ye build me, saith God, or where shall be the place of my rest? Has not my hand made all things?"
6 These words are followed by: St. Stephen chastises them and says: "O stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, always you have resisted the Holy Spirit, as your fathers were, so are you. Which prophet did not your fathers persecute? They killed those who proclaimed the future of this righteous one, over whom you have now become traitors and murderers. You have received the law by the means of angels and have never kept it.
When he read such a text to them, the last part of the epistle follows, which says: "When they heard this, their heart was broken, and they gnashed their teeth at him" etc. So it is clear that the quarrel was over faith and good works. But what should the papists do, who have no reason nor appearance for themselves, without their own human law and doctrine. If they would present such a pretense as the Jews had, namely, that God had given Mosaic laws and chosen the temple at Jerusalem, then first of all there should be a cry de jure divino, as their ancestors, the Jews, also did.
Now, this epistle is easy and gives an example of the faith of Christ in St. Stephen; therefore, it must not be glossed over much, and recently they want to overflow. Let this be the first lesson, then, that building churches and endowments do not please God, as St. Stephen here clearly demonstrates through Jesus.
9 But if we are to say and keep this, we must dare to do what St. Stephen's did.
*) Thus, a. D. Red.
has dared. For with this the pope's bulls, the clouds of indulgences, the spiritual law, and so many sermons about churches, altars, monasteries, chalices, bells, tablets, candles, and clothes would vanish; this would not unreasonably annoy the papal holiness and his own; For with it the belly, kitchen, cellar and all temporal goods would diminish, and with time idleness, pleasure and sweet life would turn into work, poverty and unwillingness, having to study and pray, or, like other people, feed themselves. This would not be good, because the holy Christian church would be despised, as Christ and the apostles were despised, and would no longer want to lead such royal splendor, to fight, to rob, to shed blood, to praise God and to exalt the holy church, as the most holy in God fathers have done and still do.
. (10) But let this be understood, not that it is evil to build and endow churches, but that it is evil to fall into it, forgetting faith and love, and thinking that it is a good work, that one may merit it before God. From this follows such an abuse that no measure is kept in it; there one wants to build all corners full of churches and monasteries, without all concern as to why the churches are to be built.
(11) For there is no other cause for building churches, if ever there be a cause, but that Christians may come together to pray, to hear sermons, and to receive the sacrament. And where this cause ceases, the same churches are to be pulled down, as is done to all other houses when they are no longer useful. But now, in all the world, every man wants to establish his own chapel or altar, or even a mass, of no other opinion than that he thinks to be saved by it and to buy heaven.
(12) Is not this a wretched, miserable error and seduction, that the poor people are thus taught to build upon works, to the great detriment of their Christian faith? It would be better to root out all the churches and foundations in the world and burn them to powder, and it would be less sinful for anyone to do so out of sacrilege, than for a single soul to be burned to powder.
is deceived and corrupted into such error. For God has not commanded anything about churches, but only about souls, which are His true church; of which St. Paul 1 Cor. 3, 16. 17. says: "You are God's temple or church: but whoever violates this church, God will destroy him."
(13) But now, behold, the holiness of the papists, that all the souls of the world are destroyed with such error, and that this true church of God is reduced to ruins, they do not mind; yea, they help it, and do no other work with their preaching of works, but that they destroy such a church in every place. Then they come and build wooden and stone churches instead of such ruined churches, and make the consciences so narrow that whoever picks the same stones and wood a little with a knife has desecrated the whole church; then one must have cost and effort to have them consecrated again. Are these not furious, mad and foolish, yes, senseless and possessed people, who make no conscience, yes, eternal merit out of such great sins of the disturbed churches, and such great consciences out of the vain jugglery of their churches? I still say: It would be good, for the sake of such error, to eradicate all churches once in all the world, and to preach, pray, baptize, and practice all Christian duty in common houses or under heaven.
14 Since the cause of building churches is also a bad cause. Christ preached for three years, and yet only three days in the temple at Jerusalem; the other days he preached in the synagogues of the Jews, in the deserts, on the mountains, in the ships, over the table and in the houses. John the Baptist never came to the temple, preached at the Jordan and in all places. The apostles preached on the day of Pentecost in Jerusalem in the market and alleys. Philip preached to the eunuch on the chariot. St. Paul preached to Philippians by the water, in the dungeon and back and forth in the houses; just as Christ commanded them Matt. 10:12 to preach in the houses. I mean, they were as good preachers as they are now.
(15) But so it shall be that the false preaching and doctrines of the devil shall be rewarded with a delicious vaulted ceiling.
But the Word of God shall not find an inn in all Bethlehem, where it may be born. Wouldn't it be time here that we, with St. Stephen, also said to these nonsensical ones: "You stiff-necked and rough-hewn in heart and ears, you always strive against the Holy Spirit", and are betrayers and murderers of the innocent and simple souls of Christ: you have received God's commandments through the apostles, and keep none of them? I fear that their hearts should also burst and their teeth gnash, and say: He has blasphemed God and spoken against the holy place, he has profaned all the churches. Oh God, what blind leaders and soul murderers rule under the accursed papacy!
(16) Here you see why thunder generally strikes the church before all other houses, that God is more hostile to them than to any other, so that in no murder pit, in no women's house such sin, such blasphemy, such murder of souls and disturbance of the church happens or can happen, as in these houses. For where the true gospel is not preached, there the public women's host is much less of a sinner than the same preacher, and the women's house is not as evil as the same church. And even if the same woman-worshiper every day made new virgins and pious wives and convent nuns to shame, which is a terrible and horrible thing to hear, nevertheless he is not as evil and harmful as such a papist preacher.
Does this seem strange to you? Think for yourself: Such a preacher does no more than to daily insane and defile with his sermons the newborn hearts from baptism, the young Christian people, the tender souls, who are vainly consecrated virgins and brides of Christ. But because this is not done bodily, but spiritually, no one is moved; but God displeases such beyond measure, and out of great anger he speaks out rudely through the prophet right away: "You insolent whore, lock your legs on all who pass over before you." That is how offended he is at such preaching. Of it also Jeremias Klagl. 5, 11. complains in his prayer: "You
have put to shame the women of Zion and the virgins of the cities of Judah. Now, spiritual virginity, the Christian faith, is infinitely better than bodily virginity, since it alone acquires heaven.
(18) Not only is faith destroyed by such doctrine and works, but also Christian love. There we see the fools walking in the caps. Some have a neighbor who is poor, or has a daughter or child, or a wife who is sick, or is otherwise poor; he leaves him, does not give him his hand, and goes and gives it to a church; or, while he lives, he collects it, and then, at death's door, he makes a will and makes donations here and there: Then priests and monks come, praise the same, absolve the pious man, give him the sacrament, bury him with honor, and cry out his name in the pulpit and at mass: This is a delicious thing! He has taken good care of his soul, much good is done to him; yes, unfortunately, done and all too slowly.
19 But of the sins that he left his neighbor in life, when he was well able, and as the rich man in the gospel left poor Lazarum, no one remembers him; neither does he consider them; the sin must remain unconfessed, unrepented of, and unabsolved, were there still so many bulls, indulgences, and spiritual fathers. For this is also the real sin that belongs to the last judgment, of which Christ will say: "I was naked, and you did not clothe me," Matth. 25, 43. So this pious man will say: "Lord, I have collected it, that I endowed you with a pen, and have paid the pope a bull with it, so I am absolved by him from all my sins. What else should such people hear but the sentence, "Depart from me, ye that are perverse, into everlasting fire"? because they have transgressed the Christian faith by works, and have despised Christian love for the sake of wood and stones.
20 Therefore let us be wise, dear friends, it is necessary; let us ever learn that faith alone in Christ alone makes one blessed, as it is sufficiently said above that no one ever builds on his works; then, while he lives, let him exercise himself in works alone, so that
Let his will be his will, let his pen be his pen, and endow his actions with doing good for his neighbor, because he lives.
(21) I will give you an example of the holy woman St. Elizabeth. She once came to a convent and saw that our Lord's suffering was beautifully painted on the walls, and said: "You should have this food spared for the nourishment of the body, for this should be painted in your heart. Behold, how simple, divine, and powerful a judgment is this concerning things that everyone holds in high esteem! If she spoke it now, the papists should certainly burn her, as she blasphemed Christ's suffering and promised good works: she would have to be a heretic if she were worth ten saints.
The other teaching.
God's commandment is not fulfilled with works.
22 For St. Stephen here rejects not only the churches and church buildings, but also all works, saying, "You received the law by means of angels and never kept it"; therefore they also reproached him again, not only as speaking against the holy temple, but also as blaspheming the law of Moses, and teaching other works than they had done. Stephen could never blame them for not keeping the law with outward works; for they were circumcised, and kept food, clothing, feasts, and the things Moses had commanded, even stoning him for the law's sake.
(23) But St. Stephen speaks from the Spirit, as St. Paul speaks from Romans 2 and 3, that no one is justified before God by the works of the law, but by faith alone. For the reason that where the Holy Spirit is not and does not give grace, man's heart does not like the law of God, but would much rather not have the law; as everyone feels in himself, and finds himself hard and reluctant to do good, but inclined and easy to do evil, as Moses also says in Gen. 6:5 and Cap. 8:21: "Man's heart is only for the law.
inclined to evil from his youth." Because there is such unwillingness, he does the works of the law with unwillingness, not from the heart, must do them out of fear of punishment, shame and hell, or does them out of love of his benefit and happiness, not for God's love and honor. Thus, all such works are only hypocrisy, and no good work is respected before God. Thus he promised the Holy Spirit and gives him to all who believe in Christ. This same Spirit, through His grace, makes the heart willing and happy to do good, so that man freely does works in vain, but only in honor of God; for through faith and the Spirit he is already righteous and blessed, to which no works could bring him. See, for this reason one freely concludes that all who are without faith and grace do not keep the law, even though they torture themselves to death with the works of the law.
24 This is what St. Stephen means here, that the Jews always contradict the Holy Spirit in that they are presumptuous by their works, do not want to be allowed to be, and do not want to have their works rejected as unrighteous, do and do always by the law and yet keep none of them right, remain hypocrites all their lives, do not want to accept the faith that they would come to right good works through it, and through the grace of the Spirit gain desire and love for the law and thus fulfill the law out of a free heart; for God wants such workers and law keepers and no others.
(25) For this reason he also says, that they are stiff-necked and uncouth in heart and ears, that they will neither hear nor understand these things, always crying out, Good works, good works, law, law, and yet do none of them themselves; just as our papists also do, all their ancestors, descendants, and the whole multitude of this generation, persecuting the righteous, boasting that they have done it for the sake of God and his law. So we have the main point of this epistle. Now let us walk through it a little.
First, we see here St. Stephen's example also in love against God and neighbor. Against God in that he punishes the Jews so severely and harshly, calls them
Traitors, murderers, and transgressors of the whole law, yes, the stiff-necked, who also resisted the law and its fulfillment, as well as the Holy Spirit Himself; item. Unhealed in ears and heart. How could he have reproached them more highly and more abominably? He does not let anything good remain in them, so that it seems that he does this out of impatience and anger.
(27) Who now should do this to the papists, where would the world suffer him? But the love he has for God compels and drives him to it; it cannot suffer nor be silent that God's commandment is so despised, it cannot pretend, it punishes and scolds whoever does against God, it does not let itself resist that, and it should stake its life on it. This is what the Scripture calls a holy chagrin, because the love of God is grieved and offended by God's dishonor and disobedience, whose honor and obedience it seeks and loves most of all; just as one reads of the prophet Elijah that he was a peculiar man in such holy chagrin against the false prophets.
28. From this example we learn that all who are silent about sins and transgression of God's commandments do not love God. Where then will the hypocrites remain who also praise transgression? Item, the after-reader, and those who laugh and like to hear and talk about the neighbor's evil.
Neither does it excuse anyone that the pope forbids in his great laws and the papists teach that one should not punish nor judge the authorities; these are Satan's teachings. Who is St. Stephen punishing here? Is it not the rulers of Jerusalem? And yet he is a wicked, lowly man, not a priest nor an ordained man. Yes, he teaches us that every Christian should punish the pope and the ruler, and is guilty, not to mention that he should not have authority and power. And they are to be punished primarily in spiritual sins; as here St. Stephen does not punish them from gross sins, but from the gilding that they did not believe and only resisted the Holy Spirit; for in this they do the most harm, deceiving themselves and the people with their laws and works.
30 Thus the pope, bishops and all papists are to be publicly punished as the stiff-necked and uncouth gilders who resist the Holy Spirit and keep no commandment of God, only betraying and murdering Christian souls, in which they are Christ's betrayers and murderers, who purchased them with His blood.
And because we have just come to the conclusion that St. Stephen was a layman or common man, not a priest, as they sing him a Levite and make an Epistoler or Evangelist out of him, so that nothing ever remains unconverted: it is to be known that St. Lucas writes Apostles 4 and 6. 4 and 6, that at the first beginning in Jerusalem the Christians gave all their goods to the commonwealth; then the apostles divided to each what he had need of. But it came to pass that the widows of the Greeks were not provided for as the widows of the Hebrews; and there arose a murmur among them. Then the apostles saw that such a work would become too much for them, so that they had to refrain from preaching and praying about it, and they gathered them all together, saying thus: "It is not right for us to leave the word of God and serve the tables. Name among you some godly men whom we will set over the work; but we will wait for the ministry of preaching and praying." Thus St. Stephen was chosen with other six and set over such goods. This is where the word diaconus, a servant, comes from, because they served the congregation to meet their temporal needs.
32 So it is now clear that St. Stephen was a guardian, or bailiff and guardian of the Christians in temporal goods, to distribute to those who were allowed to be. But with the time it has been made Epistoler and Evangelier. And no more remained of St. Stephen's office, because what still show a little the nuns' provosts, hospital masters and guardians of the poor. Such people should be the Epistoler and Evangelier, not those who were consecrated, shorn, wore dalmatics *) and waved at the flies at the altar; but a common layman and pious man, who had a register of the meager and the poor.
*) A kind of priestly vestments. D. Red.
The common bag in his command to distribute where it would be necessary. This is the real right office of St. Stephen, who never dreamed of reading epistles or gospels, nor of plates, nor of dalmatics. They are only vain human fondles.
33 A question then arises here: whether the laity and the common man might also preach, because here St. Stephen was not set to preach (which office the apostles reserved for themselves, as has been said), but to keep house, and yet, when he went to the market and came among the people, he immediately rumbles with signs and wonders, as the epistle says, and also punishes the rulers. If the pope and the papists had been there, they would certainly have asked about the format*) and about the character**), and if he had not also carried a plate together with a prayer book, he would certainly have had to burn as a heretic, because he was neither a priest nor a cleric. For the titles, priest and cleric, which Scripture gives to all Christians, they have snatched to themselves, and call the others "laymen," just as they also call themselves the "church," as if the laymen were outside the church, the tender noble people, who do neither priestly nor clerical nor church office and work, fooling the world with their little human feet.
But St. Stephen stands firm here, and with his example gives power to anyone to preach in whichever place one wants to hear, be it in the house or in the market, and does not let God's word be so bound to the plates and long skirts, so that he does not hinder the apostles in their preaching, but also waits for his office, ready to be silent where the apostles themselves preach. For there must ever be an order that
not all preach at the same time, but as St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 14, "one or two speak, and if anything is revealed to another, the former is silent". 15. is also proven: when St. Peter had preached after the sermon of some Pharisees, Barnabas and Paul preached after him, and finally also St. James, and spoke one after the other; which still shines a little in the high schools in their disputations: but now one alone talks about Dietrich of Bern, or what he dreamed.
(35) A proper sermon should be preached, as in a collation over tables. For this reason Christ instituted the sacrament, that one should sit at table and act his word; but everything has been reversed and vain human order has taken the place of divine order.
That is enough of it now. The other part, love for one's neighbor, was demonstrated by St. Stephen in that he did not allow his own murderers anything unpleasant. For no matter how harshly he punishes them for God's sake, he is still so favorable to them that at the last parting, when he had commanded his spirit and provided for himself, he forgets his own and is careful only for them, and spends his spirit in the same love. For it was not in vain that St. Lucas put the word of Stephen, when he asked for his murderers, at the last. When he asked for himself and commanded his spirit, he stood upright; but at last, when he asked for his murderers, he knelt down; moreover, he cried out here with a loud voice, which he did not do for himself.
How much more earnest was his prayer than his prayer for himself; how his heart must have been inflamed, and all his body moved and warmed at the misery of his enemies, which he saw. St. Augustine thinks that such a prayer saved St. Paul; and it is not unreasonable to believe that God certainly heard such a prayer and eternally provided something great to be done through it; as he proved in St. Paul. It may not be denied, though they are not all saved.
(38) He also sets his words in a fine way, saying, "Do not put sin in them," that is, do not make it stand still, as a pillar or foundation stands immovable; so that he may confess, repent, and be sufficient for them. As if he should say: Dear Lord, it is ever a sin and not right, no one can deny that; as repentance and confession are used to say, to hate and confess the guilt simply. Then he prays and sacrifices himself for it, so that the sin may ever be done.
(39) Behold, we see how true love is both a great enemy and friend, how harsh it punishes and how sweet it helps. It has a hard shell, but a sweet core; it is bitter to the old man, but sweet to the new man.
40 The epistle also gives not only such strong teaching and examples of faith and love, but also comfort and exhortation; it not only teaches, but also stimulates and drives in that it calls death a sleep, when all the world is terrified. But here St. Lucas says: "He has fallen asleep", that is, with a gentle death, which he did not feel, passed away, just as a man when he falls asleep, does not know what happens to him, comes to sleep insensible.
(41) And it is hard to trust in this word of the Spirit; he will not lie that the death of Christians is a sleep and a gentle death. For this is the grace and power of Christ, which he obtained for us by his death, that death should not be sour to us, if we believe in him; as he says John 8:51: "He that keepeth my word shall not taste of death for ever." Why not taste it? Because the soul, being in his living Word, full of the same life, may not feel death. For the Word lives and does not feel death; so also the soul that believes and lives in the same Word. Therefore Christ's words are called words of life, and are also words of life, and he who believes and clings to them must live.
This irritation and comfort is increased by the fact that he says: "He sees the heavens open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God. With this, Christ has shown how close, how willing, how diligent he is.
and is ready to help us, if only we believe in him and dare to live happily for his sake. It was not done for St. Stephen's sake alone, nor was it ever described for his sake; but for our comfort, that we may not doubt that he will do to us even as we do, as St. Stephen did.
(43) It is exceedingly comforting, and a great defiance of death, that the heavens are open. What should not be open and ready when the heavens, the highest creatures, are open, waiting for us, as it were, and glad that we are coming? Yes, you wanted them to be visibly open to you. But if this should happen to anyone, where would faith remain? It is enough that once happened to comfort and strengthen the faith of all Christians, to make death contemptible. For as we believe, so it happens to us, even if we do not see it.
44 What angel, what creature should not be ready and standing there, if the Lord Himself is ready and standing there to help? And it is clearly said that he did not see an angel, not God Himself, but the man, Christ, which is the most lovely and like nature, and most comforting to man. For a man sees a man rather than angels and all creatures, especially in times of need.
(45) Here also the pointed teachers ask, who measure divine works with reason and count the sea with spoons: As St. Stephen might have looked into heaven, yet our eyes might not see even a bird when it flies a little high; how then should he have seen Christ so level that he would be Christ and not another? And when we see a man on our tower, we think he is a child and do not know him. Therefore they improve the matter and say: St. Stephen's eyes were supernaturally sharpened, so that he could see so far and so surely. But how if St. Stephen had been in the house under a vault? Let go of such gossip. St. Paul also heard Christ's voice from heaven before Damascus, and yet his ears were not sharpened. And the apostles on the mountain Thabor, item, the deaf-
fer John, Luc. 3, 22, and the people, Joh. 12, 29, heard the voice of the Father, and yet their ears were not sharpened nor sharpened. Is it not much greater that a voice should be heard so high, than that an image should be seen so high? Do the eyes see immeasurably further than the ears hear?
When God wants to reveal Himself, heaven is near and all things. St. Stephen, having been under the roof or under the sky, heaven has been close to him, has not been allowed to see far. God is at all ends, may not lower himself from heaven, is soon such a face that he is truly in heaven, and yet is seen at the very closest, without all sharpening or change of the senses.
(47) Whether we do not know how this happens and is possible, there is no power in it. God's miracles do not happen so that we can measure them and catch them, but so that we can believe and become confident. Ask me, are you so clever, how through such a small stalk grows such a big apple, pear or cherry, and such much smaller miracles. Let God work and you believe, not miss him to catch and understand.
And who would tell all virtue in this example? All the fruits of the spirit shine in it. There is love, faith, patience, kindness, peace, gentleness, wisdom, truth, simplicity, strength, consolation, concern for one's neighbor, hatred, and
Punishment of all evil, contempt of death and this life, freedom, serenity, and all grace and all good: there is no virtue that is not exemplified here, no vice that is not punished here; so that the evangelist says: Stephen was full of faith and virtue. So our text has, "Stephen full of grace and strength." But the Greek, which St. Lucas wrote, thus, "Stephen full of faith and virtue." That "virtue" here means activity or deed; as if to say: He had great faith, therefore he also did much and was mighty in deed. For where faith is right, action follows; and the greater the faith, the greater the action.
There is a strong, powerful, active thing about a right faith. Nothing is impossible for it; it neither rests nor celebrates. Therefore St. Stephen, before the rest of the activity of his faith, did not only bad and common good works, but also miracles and signs among the people in public; in addition, great miracles and great signs, says Lucas. This is written as a sign that he who is not active is also not a believer and may not boast of his faith. It is not in vain that he has put faith first and then action, to testify that action is a proof of faith; also that no good thing can be done without faith, which must be first in all deeds. God help us. Amen!