Do command strips work on the ceiling?
I would absolutely not use those for hanging cookware from a ceiling, no matter how smooth. 


Command strips are designed to carry load in shear, parallel with their mounting surface. Your application would have the load in tension, perpendicular to the adhesive. This would result in detachment with much smaller loads or in a shorter timeframe. 
The finished surface of the ceiling will also be subjected to tension stress, which could possibly result in severe damage to the paint or underlying paper (in the case of drywall). 
You risk serious damage or injury if (when) it all does let go. If history is any guide, this will happen in the dead of night, possibly triggering a violent, dazed, and comical assault on the "intruder" by your home's occupants.