I would suggest any of the following tools;
or
I am still learning Docker as I have discovered it recently, but it doesn't take one long to realize that Docker is tool built for developers. Give it spin and enjoy! And note that Docker rocks when it comes to configuring things via Environment Variables.
I have used LXC tools for while and they are pretty okay but, for development they require a lot of setup work. And chroots require even more work too, to me they take away from you development focus. And they are not very portable.
Also you might want to take a look at Vagrant.
Can't post a lot links here since I'm new but Vagrant is so popular if you type it in a google search it will be the first or second result you see.
"Create and configure lightweight, reproducible, and portable development environments."
Also note that Vagrant works with various Virtual Machine or Container Environments. Think of it as a tool to create your virtual development environment with one command "vagrant up". And it's not limited to Linux, it works (exactly the same!) on Linux, Mac OS and Windows.
Not to mention when you docker and/or vagrant you can check your Dockerfile or Vagrantfile into your version control system. So they become part of your project and change with your project.
Hope these tools help.