Too many of the replies here are misinformation.
Kerosene, mineral spirits, or any solvent that says it contains petroleum distillates WILL leave a residue. To get rid of it you have to burn it off, or clean it with alcohol.
Denatured alcohol or acetone leaves no residue.

You won't see people doing a final cleaning of electrical conductors with petroleum distillates. It leaves a flamable residue. A spark could set it off. Alcohol is used to clean surgical equipment because it leaves no residue.

Ideally, you use petroleum distillates as the initial cleaner to dissolve the oil/grease. It mixes and thins out the oil/grease. The heavy stuff sluffs off, becoming watery and easy to clean up instead of just getting smeared around. You then use the alcohol to remove the petroleum distillates' residue.

Engine cleaners and car waxes have petroleum distillates in them. They leave behind a "protective film/coating/residue preventing water from adhering. This is the beading action. But you don't want grease to just slide off of your bearrings and races. You want the grease to stick to them. Alcohol leaves metal very dry, welcoming a coating of grease to stick, almost absorb into the surface and stay there.
The problem with alcohol cleaners is that any metal that isn't coated with grease afterwards is very suseptable to rust. With no residue on the metal, water can hang around on the surface and corrode it.