Yes and No. I'm not disagreeing, but I feel the need to give a more complete explanation. The test light is a tool, and like any other you need to be careful how you use it and what conclusions you draw.
Most people connect a test lamp to a good grounding point, say Neg terminal of the battery. But with that setup you can ONLY test for the DELIVERY of 12V power.... which is exactly 1/2 of the circuit. Obviously, the circuit is not working because any break any place in the circuit prevents the device from working.
The other half of the circuit, the RETURN of power back to the battery, is just as necessary as power DELIVERY. Therefore you may need to connect your test lamp lead to the Pos battery terminal when chasing "ground" problems.
But your second point is extremely valid. The presence of 12V as indicated by a test lamp does not indicate the presence of enough current carrying capability to operate high current items like starters and electric clutches.
Just my 2 cents.