I'm not an engineer, but I started looking at this problem from an analytical perspective.
In a chain drive, the rollers rotate on the link pins. If everything is clean and lubricated, they should not be rotating against the cogs or chainrings.
One end of the chain link plates also rotates on the link pins
In shifting, the chain link plates rub momentarily on the sides of the cog and chainring teeth
From this, it follows that the primary need for lubrication is on the link pins which will allow the rollers and link plates to rotate freely. Given the brief, momentary side-loading and contact between the chain plates and the cogs/chainsets during shifting, I'm not sure how much lubrication of the chain links themselves is needed. I'm thinking that whatever lubricant is used, if it were to be precisely applied using, say a needle-type applicator to each link pin, that this would be sufficient to the task.
If that is the case, then any lubricant ending up on the cogs or chainrings is unnecessary.
Feel free to poke holes in my line of reasoning here, but I'm thinking that the clean appearance of TromboneAl's drive components is not inconsistent with proper lubrication. Having used waxes for applications other than lubrication, I'd be inclined to mix some mineral oil with the melted paraffin, thus yielding a softer consistency (and therefore more inclined to remain in place around the link pins) to make the treatment a bit more long-lasting. I have a tub of a beeswax/mineral oil mixture that I'd be tempted to try.