What do you do when your cat won't listen to you?

This is a most interesting question. The best thing we have learned with our cat is when he is doing something wrong or is in the wrong place like up in the china closet we ignore him. For if we try and move him from an area or yell at him then he does become mean. He bites and races around knocking things down and repeatedly goes back to where he is not suppose to be. We have tried spraying him with water or gentle tapping him with a newspaper or offering a treat, just to get him to behave. Nothing but ignoring him works.
We have noticed other times when he is a good cat that shaking the treat jar or offering to brush him gets his attention, but those times are rare and far between, mostly he is a brat.